Man gets 14 years in beer pong case
Judge gives maximum sentence for ‘absolutely ridiculous’ crime
A state District Court judge handed down a 14-year sentence Wednesday for a man accused in a deadly shooting sparked by a game of beer pong.
Luis Delgado, 24, pleaded no contest to aggravated battery and aggravated burglary in February. Under the terms of his plea agreement, Delgado faced between two and 14 years in prison.
Nathan Ware, also charged in the killing, pleaded guilty in November to second-degree murder and lesser crimes, and is serving a 20-year sentence. Prosecutors called Ware the “mastermind.”
Police said Ware got into a fight with two men over a game of beer pong — a drinking game in which teams throw ping pong balls into cups of beer. Ware left the party, returned later, forced his way into the home, at which point both men were shot. Joray Chavez died later of his injuries.
Judge Brett Loveless said the idea that a “beer pong fight” led to someone’s death was “absolutely ridiculous” and “concerning.”
“You get alcohol and firearms involved,” he said, “nothing good comes of it.”
Before announcing the 14-year sentence, Loveless noted that Delgado was on probation for a domestic violence case at the time of the shooting.
Delgado’s actual role that night is unclear. His defense attorney Nicole Moss said he was not even at the party until Ware called to ask him for a ride. Moss said Delgado arrived at the apartment just as Ware was breaking into the home.
“His really big mistake that leads him here today is the fact that he didn’t do anything to stop it,” she said. “He watched what happened, this horrible shooting, and then he helped Mr. Ware leave.”