Tears flowed freely in district court on Tuesday as the widow and daughters of Dr. Michael Sanchez talked about at loving father and devoted husband.
Sanchez, 52, was killed when he was run over by Philip Smith, 49, on Jan. 11, 2009, as he jogged along busy Bandera Road.
"He was always with them and encouraged them and would constantly tell them, on a daily basis, that he loved them and was proud of them," said Apelle Sanchez, the doctor's widow, said as she described his relationship with the couple's two daughters.
During Smith's trial, witnesses testified that the SUV he was driving was having mechanical problems and was not roadworthy and that he was using his cell phone and had small amounts of alcohol and antidepressants in his system.
On Monday, the jury found Smith guilty of criminally negligent homicide instead of manslaughter, as charged in the indictment.
After deliberating for just over an hour on Tuesday, they sentenced him to two years in state jail but recommended probation.
Smith will be formally sentenced by Judge Philip Kazen on June 11. As a condition of probation, Kazen can sentence Smith up to 6 months in state jail.
