Man charged in I-30 deaths gets trial date

He’s accused of killing woman, children

TEXARKANA — A man accused of causing the deaths of a woman and two small children by driving the wrong way on Interstate 30 in March has a trial day set for November.

Richard Gabriel Lopez, 43, has a pretrial hearing Oct. 31. Trial is set for Nov. 27, according to Miller County Circuit Court records. The dates were set Aug. 1 during a hearing before 8th South Judicial Circuit Court Judge Wren Autrey.

Lopez is being held in the Miller County jail with bail set at $1 million. He is charged with three counts of second-degree murder and two counts of first-degree battery, according to court records.

A criminal information document filed by Prosecuting Attorney Connie Mitchell describes the deaths of the victims “under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life.”

Lopez was driving a 2015 Ford Mustang eastbound in the westbound lane of I-30 when he reportedly struck a 2017 Kia Optima driven by Takeyah Latin, according to the Arkansas State Police.

The front passenger side of the Mustang collided with the front passenger side of the Optima.

Lopez’s vehicle came to rest in the highway facing north. Latin’s vehicle came to rest in the median facing east, according to a police report.

JaBrea Conway, 24, and a male infant, who were passengers in the Optima, were ejected from the vehicle and died at the scene, according to the affidavit. A 4-year-old girl who was seriously injured died later in the week at Arkansas Children’s Hospital.

Two other women in the Optima were seriously injured, according to the affidavit.

One of the women in the vehicle told police that they were traveling from Hope to Texarkana to celebrate another child’s birthday at a ChuckE-Cheese restaurant.

Lopez’s girlfriend, Arianna Para, reportedly told police she had been driving the Mustang until they stopped at the Flying J near the 7-mile marker to get gas. Para said that is when Lopez jumped into the driver’s seat of the Mustang and drove away, according to the affidavit.

Lopez was arrested a few days after the accident when he was released from Wadley Regional Medical Center. He was taken into custody by the Bowie County, Texas, sheriff’s office on a warrant issued by the Arkansas State Police.

Second-degree murder is punishable by imprisonment in Arkansas state prison for a term not less than six years nor more than 30 years.