SAN ANTONIO – A woman convicted of intoxication manslaughter and intoxication assault charges has been sentenced to six years in prison.
A Bexar County jury sentenced Rosalinda Olalde, who caused a DWI crash that killed a man, on Friday after several hours of deliberation.
Her lawyer had asked the jury for nine years of probation, but prosecutors asked them to consider the “high end” of the punishment range, which was 2-20 years in prison.
She was found guilty on Wednesday.
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On Aug. 10, 2018, Olalde was driving drunk and crashed broadside into a car, killing 22-year-old Mario Velasquez-Palau.
According to testimony, Olalde was driving 80 mph and her blood-alcohol level was more than twice the legal limit when she lost control of her SUV, veered onto a sidewalk and slammed into the car that was trying to enter the 6500 block of Loop 1604 from a parking lot.
The victim’s sister was among those who delivered heart-wrenching testimony Thursday.
“Everything changed, my parents will never be the same,” said Valerie Velasquez-Palau while sobbing on the witness stand. “We were always a close family. He was everything to us.”
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Four passengers in Velasquez-Palau’s car were critically injured, including Guendy Murrillo, who also testified.
“It changed my life because I feel like nothing’s the same,” Murrillo said. “Losing somebody who was that close, it’s really like losing a brother.”