Santa Fe man on trial in double-fatal accident

Defendant allegedly ran stop sign, striking another vehicle

SANTA FE — The trial has started against a man who allegedly ran a stop sign and killed two people in another car more than three years ago.

Mansoor Karimi, 42, is charged with two counts of homicide by vehicle and one count of failing to render aid after an accident. He allegedly ran a stop sign on Camino Carlos Rey at the intersection of Plaza Verde in December 2016 and hit a car driven by 30-year-old Christopher Bryant.

Bryant died at the scene while his passenger, 33-year-old Ian Sweatt, later died at a hospital.

Prosecutor Kent Wahlquist said during opening arguments that Karimi’s BMW was going 61 mph when it collided with the driver side of Bryant’s Chevrolet Cobalt.

But Wahlquist also noted that Bryant had a blood alcohol content of .07 — just under the state legal driving limit of .08 — and both men in the Cobalt had THC, the psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, in their systems.

Bryant’s phone was also using data at the time, Wahlquist said, but it’s unclear how it was being used at the time of the crash.

A witness to the accident, Diego Gabaldon, testified Monday that he saw Karimi’s car go past him in the opposite direction at a speed of at least 70 mph. He said he then heard a “boom” and saw two cars spinning out of control in his rear-view mirror.

Gabaldon said he turned around and drove toward the crash and saw Karimi standing outside his car possibly vomiting.

Gabaldon said he got out of his car and went to check on the people in the Cobalt. He got emotional on the stand when talking about what he saw.

“I saw the driver; he was dead,” he said. “His neck was broken. I assumed that they both were dead.”

Karimi’s attorney, Tom Clark, said his client was “dead sober” during the crash.

“Accidents do happen, and every time someone dies in a car accident we don’t have criminal charges,” Clark said.

Clark also said the state indicted Karimi on the charges before knowing that Bryant had alcohol and THC in his system.

Last year the families of Sweatt and Bryant filed lawsuits against Karimi and General Motors for not meeting general safety standards with the Cobalt. The suit is still pending.