DENVER - A Denver judge sentenced an illegal immigrant with a history of alcohol abuse to 12 years in prison on Wednesday for driving drunk and slamming into a car driven by a 45-year-old single mother Leah Miller died on Sept. 10, 2009, a day after she was hit near the intersection of East 26th Avenue and Magnolia Street. That crash came after an earlier crash near Monaco Parkway and 22nd Avenue. Cesar Acosta-Castillo was no stranger to driving drunk when he was arrested back then. He had two priors, one in 1999 and another in 2000. Denver prosecutors told Judge Robert McGahey on Wednesday that Acosta-Castillo was sentenced to two years probation following the 2000 case, but he never ended up serving it completely because he was deported in 2001. He has admitted to coming back into the country illegally from Mexico in 2002, and managed to stay under the radar of authorities until 2008. Acosta-Castillo was on probation and driving without a license when he ran into Miller's car last year. His BAC was 0.184 said prosecutors. It's unclear if there was any effort to deport him prior to the crash. "Nothing in my experience compared to losing a child," said Edward Miller, Leah Miller's father, on Wednesday. "The loss we feel is everyday." Leah Miller's teenage son now lives with Edward Miller. "Our daughter will never come back to us," Edward Miller added. "[Acosta-Castillo's] GMC truck became a lethal weapon.... The impact sent my daughter's car 85 feet." Sheldon Miller, Leah's teenage son, told the judge that the loss he feels is immeasurable. "She will never see my graduation... She will never see me have a family." Speaking through an interpreter, Acosta-Castillo admitted to having a problem with alcohol. "I understand this was a situation that could have been avoided.... I hope the family of the deceased someday might be able to forgive me," he said. Shortly before sentencing Acosta-Castillo to the maximum sentence he faced for pleading guilty to vehicular homicide, Judge McGahey called the defendant a "time bomb." Miller worked as a legal secretary at Holme Roberts and Owen in Denver. Her family and friends described her as an "angel on earth" who was generous with her time. "Near perfect," described another friend. Edward Miller says his daughter was just two minutes away from home when she was hit. http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=167194&catid=339
Immigration - 5 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
If the driver had been a US Citizen, would they feel better?
2 :
"Families being broken up" is what happens when you deport grandma, not some criminal.
3 :
Wait until the pass the DREAM ACT - we are going to give these bums all the rights of citizenship - taking the sludge from Mexico and making them whole- what a bunch of crap!
4 :
These activists continue to defend illegals no matter how many times they been arrested or deported.This guy as the judge said was a time bomb. It matters because we removed this illegal, but he kept coming back and finally decided to drive drunk and now a kid is without a mother.If this were an illegal and the driver was American, activists would react very differently and be out there demanding action and filing lawsuits, Mexico would furnish lawyers. There is a big difference
5 :
Mexican should quickly take Canadian citizenship (easy three year residence requirement) then re-enter USA on Canadian passport for 6+ months of visa free stay plus no lifetime visa requirement etc.
