Family of victim keeping community updated on court proceedings
Criminal court cases take months, sometimes years to reach trial or be resolved. There are so many types of hearings – some consequential, other procedural, and they all take time to prepare for and schedule.
So members of the Alec Flores family have taken it upon themselves to keep the community updated on every court hearing that has happened in the case of Constance Addison.
Addison, Yuba City, is set to face trial for murder, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, hit-and-run resulting in death or permanent injury, and misdemeanor child endangerment.
Addison allegedly hit and killed Alec Flores, 13, of Yuba City, with her car while she was drunk. Flores was walking to school on Oct. 7, 2019, when the incident occurred. Addison’s children were in the car with her at the time of the alleged crime.
The Flores family sends emails and posts updates at every step.
At the most recent court hearing on Tuesday, a Sutter County Superior Court Judge granted a motion from the defense to have the venue of the trial moved to another county. Judge Laura Davis cited the victim’s prominence in the community based on an extensive social media presence and support from the community in the form of petitions and support from businesses as part of her decision.
The Sutter County District Attorney’s Office opposed the motion and disagreed with the court’s decision.
The new venue for the trial will be discussed in court on Jan. 29 at 9 a.m.
Deputy District Attorney Diego Heimlich is prosecuting the case and said it is too early to determine whether the family’s activities in the community have affected the case in court.
But Alec Flores’ aunt, Becky
Repka, said the family set up www. alecflores.com to post updates about the case because a lot of people are interested in following along, including family and friends from the Yuba-sutter area and beyond.
“It can be overwhelming to answer the same questions dozens, even hundreds, of times,” Repka said in an email. “And rather than answer the questions individually, it serves as a central place for details.”
She said the site serves people who are not on social media and may miss out on updates posted there.
Separate from the website is the Alec Flores Youth Sports Foundation, a nonprofit set up by the family to honor Flores’ memory by supporting young athletes with scholarships. The non-profit launched in October on the oneyear anniversary of Flores’ death with the “10 for Alec Challenge.”
The challenge was a 10-day online campaign to remember Flores and raise funds for the nonprofit. People who participated made a video or took a photo of themselves doing 10 of something – like jumping jacks, push ups or a 10-word poem.
“The ‘10 for Alec Challenge’ was created as a positive way to remember a great kid on a rough day and to model a positive response to a really awful situation for the community, especially the youth,” Repka said.