Driver gets probation for hit-and-run
Family members of two killed in 2016 incident not happy with judge’s decision
A sharply dressed Joseph Roybal sat with his back to a packed courtroom Wednesday, awaiting his punishment for charges stemming from a hit-and-run nearly two years ago when, authorities say, he killed two people with his truck as they were walking across U.S. 84 in the dark in Hernández, a Rio Arriba County village north of Española.
Roybal, 22, of Santa Fe pleaded no contest to two felony counts of knowingly leaving the scene of an accident causing great bodily harm or death, charges that could have exposed him to up to six years of prison time.
A judge sentenced him instead to five years of probation — a decision that displeased some family members of the victims.
Beverly P. Trujillo, 43, was killed on impact in the July 2016 collision, The New Mexican reported at the time. Joey Romero, 49, was transported to nearby Presbyterian Española Hospital but later died of his injuries.
Roybal wasn’t facing criminal charges for the collision itself, which occurred late at night as he was heading home from a trip to Abiquiú Lake. Both the prosecutor and the defense said that according to a crash reconstructionist’s discoveries, the fatal accident was unavoidable.
Instead, the felony charges in the case stemmed from the fact that Roybal kept driving after hitting the pair. According to a criminal complaint filed by a New Mexico State Police officer in 2016, Roybal called his mother that night to tell her he had hit something and then continued to his home in Santa Fe and parked his truck.
The next day, his lawyer called state police to tell them where to find the vehicle sought in the case, court documents say.
After hearing emotional testimony from both sides of the aisle, District Judge David Thomson told family members of Trujillo and Romero that he recognized and respected the magnitude of the loss they had endured.
He said he also respected the lives of the victims, but given the facts of the case, he decided to give Roybal far less than the maximum penalty.
In addition to sentencing Roybal to probation rather than prison time, Thomson decided to grant him a conditional discharge, which means Roybal doesn’t have to report the felony charges on things like job applications.
The charges could remain relevant on the federal level, however, if Roybal is convicted of another serious crime.
“He is a young man that was involved in an accident, and then he made the bad decision not to stop,” Thomson told the crowd. “… The consecutive terms of [probation] will be, in my view, a reminder to Mr. Roybal … of what occurred that night, which I’m sure weighs on him.”
People on both sides of the case offered testimony, telling the judge why they thought Roybal should — or shouldn’t — get a stiff sentence.
Daughters of both victims told the judge that because of the accident, their children will never get to know the grandparent they lost.
“I can’t help but to think about that night. If things had been different, if phone calls had been made, would my mother still be alive?” asked a teary Julie Vigil, Trujillo’s daughter.
Betty Romero, the mother of Joey Romero, was firm in her admonitions and clear about her anguish.
She called Roybal’s actions cowardly and pointed out that the victims’ bodies had been “dismembered and mangled and left to die as if they were animals.”
“I have a lot of anger,” she said. “… Our son was everything to us, and I don’t want this to be repeated, as it is repeated on a daily basis in our state.”
Dan Marlowe, Roybal’s attorney, argued that his client had no past criminal record or history of drug use, and that he works two jobs to support his wife and family.
“He doesn’t deserve to be saddled with a felony charge out of this,” Marlowe said.
Roybal’s mother, Michelle Valdez, addressed the victims’ families, saying she understood their feelings. Years before, she said, she was on their side of the courtroom after a family member had been murdered.
Her son, still a young man, had to cope with that murder, the crash and the recent loss of his infant son, Valdez told the judge.
“Many individuals faced with such a burden would turn to a life of alcohol and drugs,” she said. In the wake of tragedy, her son has stayed strong, she told the court.
“My son would never intentionally harm another human being,” she added.
Roybal was the last to address the court. He stood briefly before the judge, then turned to address the victims’ families.
“I want to tell you that I am truly sorry for what happened,” he said. “It was an honest to God accident …”
A shout from the back of the courtroom interrupted him: “Why didn’t you stop?”
Roybal continued: “I truly hope that one day you can find it in your heart to forgive me.”
After the hearing, Marlowe said he thought the probation was fair and justified.
But some members of Romero’s family were not satisfied.
“We feel justice has not been served, absolutely has not been served,” said one of Romero’s aunts, Darlene Martinez.