Lavillia Spry Texas drunk driver sentenced 43 years in fatal hit and run of Ramon Gutierrez Harris County Sergeant as jail term leaves the internet divided amid debate for being onerous and excessive.
A Texas drunk driver convicted of a deadly hit and run of a police officer has left the web divided after a judge on Thursday sentenced a ‘black’ female driver to 43 years in prison.
Lavillia Spry, 43, erupted into floods of tears as she was sentenced on Thursday over the death of Harris County Sheriff’s Office sergeant Ramon Gutierrez, 45, in a crash almost three years ago.
She was drunk when she drove around emergency vehicles and rammed into Gutierrez as he stood on a road escorting traffic, before fleeing the scene.
Convicted of intoxication manslaughter in just 15 minutes
The sentencing follows Spry previously being found guilty by a jury after just 15 minutes of deliberation on charges of intoxication manslaughter., KHOU reported.
The crash came on the evening of January 24, 2022, just on 1am, when Gutierrez was working an off-duty motorcycle job to escort a heavy load on a roadway. He had reportedly been working extra jobs at the time to pay for his daughter’s upcoming wedding.
Gutierrez was off his motorcycle at the time and was standing wearing a reflective jacket and flashlight, with emergency vehicles stationed nearby.
Spry – who had given birth just one month before the incident – drove around the emergency vehicles and accelerated into the sergeant, dragging him for a short distance.
Officials said she continued driving and fled the scene before she was stopped and arrested shortly after by an officer who followed her.
Arresting officers said she appeared impaired and attempted to resist arrest when she was taken into custody.
Gutierrez was airlifted to hospital but succumbed to his injuries. He had served with the HCSO for 13 years, and was described by HSCO Sheriff Ed Gonzalez as an ‘excellent’ officer who gave ‘exemplary service.’
43 year jail term leaves internet divided
Gonzalez said Gutierrez was ‘loved’ by his colleagues, and the scars of his death ‘will be there forever’ in his department.
Following Spry’s arrest, her bail was revoked and increased by $50,000 after it was found that the ‘problem drinker’ had violated her bond conditions as her SCRAM tracking device detected alcohol in her system, ABC13 reported.
And then there were this comments on the web that made this author wonder. See what you think?
’43 years excessive, yes she was impaired because she was intoxicated, but it wasn’t premeditated. Maybe 5 years , if she doesn’t have any prior conviction.’
‘If it was a rich good looking college student, no sentence would have been given.’
‘Clearly, this is a postpartum behavior situation. I hope that she will get legal representation.’
‘If this was a regular person she killed instead of a police officer she’d probably only be serving a few years. I don’t get why everyone here is so impressed with the unequal application of justice.’
‘Of course, I’m very sorry for the family of the officer, but why does it seem that if something happens to law enforcement, it’s a bigger deal than if it happened to you or me?’
‘Drunk Drivers….should ALWAYS…get mandatory 25 years in prison….NO EARLY PAROLE.’
‘The US “justice system” is a laughing stock everywhere. As well as the world’s highest percapita imprisonment rate, there are even crazy 300 year sentences. Could it be that prisons in the US are profit making BUSINESSES with actual shareholders? And elected officials are well rewarded for locking people up come election time?’
‘It’s election time for judges in Houston. Several major TV campaigns are rightly trashing weak judges and short sentences. They’re all a tad nervous and the last few months has seen an uptick in long sentences.’
‘She fled after killing a cop? In Texas? She’s lucky to still be alive.’
