Woman going to prison for drunk driving crash that killed her 7-year-old

IDAHO FALLS — A 30-year-old female was fixed situation clip aft she pleaded blameworthy to causing a clang that killed her 7-year-old child.

Jessica Martinez was sentenced by District Judge Bruce Pickett to a minimum of 1 and a half years and a maximum of 10 years successful prison. She will besides beryllium required to salary astatine slightest $1,500 successful tribunal fees and fines.

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Martinez initially pleaded not blameworthy to felony vehicular manslaughter and 3 counts of felony wounded to a kid but accepted a plea statement successful April, wherever she agreed to plead blameworthy to vehicular manslaughter successful speech for nan prosecution dropping nan remaining charges and recommending a maximum of 10 years successful situation astatine sentencing.

Sentencing

Martinez’s defense attorney, Jason Gustaves, based on for a five-year probationary play pinch an underlying condemnation of a minimum of 1 and a half years and a maximum of 10 years successful prison.

Gustaves said Martinez had been drinking astatine location earlier getting into an statement pinch her boyfriend. The statement upset her 4 children, truthful she took them for a thrust to calm them down.

“She typically took nan kids for a thrust erstwhile they would beryllium upset, and it would calm them down. The littler ones often would autumn asleep,” said Gustaves. “This time, though, she had had intoxicant to portion … she reached backmost to set 1 of nan children and mislaid power of nan car and rolled nan car.”

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According to tribunal documents, nan clang occurred connected Nov. 15 astatine 11 p.m. successful nan area of 2080 East 65th South, conscionable eastbound of Sandy Downs.

Gustaves admitted his customer made mediocre decisions by not calling rule enforcement and alternatively calling her fellow to return 3 of nan children to nan hospital.

“She was importantly injured arsenic well, she deed her head. She didn’t make nan correct decisions instantly after,” said Gustaves. “And past she called (the children’s biologic father) to show him, ‘I deliberation (the victim) is dead.’… So she was laying location pinch her child. She had a surgery backmost and ribs and a punctured lung. She was intoxicated, she deed her head. So she was successful trauma arsenic well.”

According to Gustaves, Martinez are her siblings were calved to parents pinch intoxicant maltreatment issues, perchance starring to Martinez’s ain addiction problems.

“Alcohol has been a problem for her nan mostly of her life. In this case, location was nan humor intoxicant level of .75, which intends she drank much than she thought she did,” said Gustaves. “She and her 2 sisters were each 3 calved to parents that abused intoxicant and drugs. She and her 2 sisters were each diagnosed pinch fetal intoxicant syndrome astatine commencement and past were removed from nan parents and were adopted into a larger family wherever location were 10 kids that grew up. And she grew up pinch a reasonably unchangeable family from there.”

Bonneville County Prosecutor Randy Neal based on for a minimum of 3 years successful situation and a maximum of ten, stating that Martinez freely made nan determination to portion and thrust pinch her children successful nan car.

“She should person been nan 1 that kept this kid retired of harm. The decisions that went into what resulted successful nan decease of this young girl, this guiltless girl, 1 who had nary power complete nan circumstances aliases complete nan result,” said Neal. “There should person been personification location to protect her. And location wasn’t.”

Neal insinuated that Martinez grounded to telephone rule enforcement because she did not want to beryllium caught drinking and driving, resulting successful nan decease of her daughter.

“Her kid laic dormant aliases dying adjacent her, and she grounded to telephone emergency services. Was that because she was concerned astir nan truth that she had been drinking and driving? I don’t know,” said Neal. “But I do cognize that respective injured group went without attraction because they chose to effort to grip this wrong their family alternatively than telephone nan authorities.”

Martinez gave a connection to nan court, apologizing for her actions and saying she is trying to support her daughter’s representation alive.

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“Without my children, I americium not who I’m expected to be. And now I person mislaid 1 forever. And I will ne'er forgive myself for that. I will ne'er forgive myself for putting my different children done this tragic loss,” said Martinez. “I talk to them often astir their sister, and we do things to thief support her representation live because she is our angel now, and I just, I emotion my children. I recognize really bad I messed up. And I’m going to person to unrecorded pinch this for nan remainder of my life. My children are going to person to unrecorded pinch this. And I conscionable want to beryllium location to thief them cope, thief them heal.”

Before pronouncing nan sentence, Pickett explained his ruling, stating that though location is thing that tin bring nan kid back, he feels an responsibility to deter nine and beryllium that nan child’s life had value.

“These are difficult cases. There are nary bully answers. I tin nonstop you to 15 years, nan maximum successful prison. It’s not going to do thing to bring your seven-year-old girl back,” said Pickett. “I could person you not do a time successful jail. And by doing so, bespeak that your child’s life has very small value.”

Pickett publication complete nan facts of nan case, including that a half-empty vessel of Crown Royal intoxicant was recovered adjacent to nan driver’s doorway aft nan crash, and that Martinez admitted to being nether nan power of alcohol, marijuana and hydrocodone.

“There are a number of mistakes made. Certainly nan intoxicant and consuming intoxicant was a immense mistake. Not placing your kid successful a information restraint astatine 7 years aged is an further mistake,” said Pickett. “Not calling instantly for an ambulance, but alternatively calling for nan children’s begetter was an further mistake. Because I don’t cognize what would person happened.”