DUI driver who killed fiance in crash on way to Yosemite spared prison by Fresno judge

A Los Angeles man who killed his fiance in a solo DUI crash en route to Yosemite won’t go to state prison for the crime, a Fresno County judge decided Tuesday.

Francisco MunozAguayo had faced up to four years in prison after his passenger Karina Velasquez, 28, died in the Aug. 15 rollover crash.

However, after hearing pleas from the defendant’s mother — plus the victim’s mother — Judge Leanne Le Mon sentenced him to 300 days in jail and three years probation for driving drunk and causing the fatal crash.

MunozAguayo, 30, stood quietly with tears in his eyes as his mother, Maria Munoz, and his fiance’s mother, Socorro Velasquez, gave impassioned pleas to the judge to not send him to prison.

“He was the love of her life and he was always by her side,” Velasquez said. “When I see him, I see her and it makes me feel good. If you take him away from us, the way God took my daughter away, my heart will be broken.”

MunozAguayo’s mother told the judge she immigrated to the United States 28 years ago from Mexico and brought her son with her in hopes of providing him a better life.

“This country is everything to me and to him,” Munoz said. “I brought him here when he was 3 years-old to get an education and to be a better son. I want him to be somebody in this country.”

Police said Karina Velasquez was killed on Aug. 15, 2020 in a single-car rollover accident on Highway 198 west of Coalinga.

MunozAguayo told officers he and Velasquez, his girlfriend of eight years, had driven up from Los Angeles to Monterey for a night and were on their way to Yosemite National Park.

According to a California Highway Patrol report, MunozAguayo admitted he had two to three beers before they left Monterey at about 10:30 a.m.

As the couple were heading eastbound on Highway 198 and starting to head downhill he told police he “caught a dip” and lost control of his 2010 Toyota Corolla. The car slammed into an embankment and rolled. He was able to get out of the Toyota, his fiance was not.

Rescue crews arrived and provided aid. But Velasquez’s injuries were severe and she died while being taken to a hospital.

A CHP officer arrested MunozAguayo for driving under the influence and he was later charged with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated as well as driving under the influence while causing injury and unsafe speed for prevailing conditions.

On June 1, MunozAguayo agreed to plead no contest to a charge of gross vehicular manslaughter and the remaining charges were dropped.

The defendant was facing four years in prison, a sentence that was supported by prosecutor Christopher Moss.

Moss acknowledged the crash had tragic consequences for both families, but he also said the defendant needs to be held accountable for his actions.

“As horrible as this was and as much sympathy as there is between these two families, it is important to know that the defendant made the decision to drink and drive,” Moss said.

“And that decision placed both his life and Karina Velasquez’s life in danger that day.”

Defense attorney Brian Andritch said his client does not deny responsibility for his actions, but he is heartbroken over causing the crash.

In a statement to the probation department MunozAguayo simply said, “I lost my life partner.”

Andritch added that his client has no criminal history and agreed to wear a monitor that detects the use of alcohol. He wore it for more than a year, with zero violations.

The judge agreed to probation plus a short stint in jail. MunozAguayo is eligible for half-time credits so his expected release date from jail is Dec. 7.

“I am sorry for everyone’s loss,” Le Mon said.

The judge also agreed to let the defendant’s mother and the victim’s mother hug him before he was taken into custody.