Day 2: Trial for Pharr boy who died on his bike continues

PHARR, Texas (ValleyCentral) — Day two of the wrongful death trial for a Pharr boy, who died while riding his bike in his neighborhood, was filled with tears, testimonies and tough questions.

ValleyCentral was in the courtroom Wednesday to bring you the latest on this trial, where the parents of Caleb Ramirez, an 8-year-old boy who died in a crash while riding his bike, are suing the Pharr Police Department, the 17-year-old driver in the crash, the driver's parents, and his older brother.

Caleb’s parents, Sonia Hernandez and Jose Ramirez, took the stand Wednesday detailing what they witnessed on April 26, 2024, the day their young son died.

Hernandez said moments before the accident, Caleb was telling his mom about how he scored two 100s at school and was proud of himself. His mother recalled her son asking if he could ride his bike to which she replied, yes. However, Hernandez said she told Caleb to give her a minute to use the bathroom.

"That was the last time I saw my baby alive," the grieving mother said.

The court was shown a video of the incident and Caleb's last moments alive. In the video, Caleb can be seen helping to bring a dog back inside the home and closing the gate all the way. Moments later, Caleb is seen trying to open the gate to get to his bike.

The complete video of the 8-year-old boy being run over by the truck was shown to the court, evoking strong emotions from many.

Witnesses at the scene said Hernandez's wail sounded like La Llorona when she responded to the crash. Hernandez stated Caleb was convulsing at the scene and when she arrived someone in the neighborhood was already starting CPR on him.

In a panic, Hernandez said she called her "doctora" as a last-ditch effort to see what could be done to save her son, but later said she knew he was gone.

"I see my baby, and he had already wet himself. Tears were coming out of his eyes, and I am looking at him and talking to him, and he is just wide-eyed and not blinking. I knew that he was gone," she said.

With tears in her eyes, Hernandez noted that her 2-year-old saw everything that transpired on Caleb's last day. She recalled not being allowed to ride with her son in the ambulance and finding a ride to trail behind.

At 8:01 p.m., April 26, 2024, Caleb was pronounced dead. He was buried the Thursday after.

Another mother who took the stand on Wednesday was the mother of Alex Castillo, the 17-year-old accused of being behind the wheel and running over Caleb.

"I am not going to respond," Aurea Castillo said at the stand while being questioned about the truck involved in the accident by Caleb's parents' attorney. Aurea pleaded the Fifth Amendment to every question asked of her about how her sons used their cars.

Her son Alex took a similar approach by pleading the Fifth on the stand.

In a previous interview with Pharr Police Detective Chevy Flores Aurea said one of the families cars was broken and that is why Alex was driving his older brother's, Orlando Castillo, truck.

Additionally, one of the most significant testimonies of the day was that of Detective Flores who said he arrived at the accident at 7:15 p.m. and took over the investigation.

He testified that none of the officers at the scene asked Alex for his driver's license. He also noted that no data was able to be extracted from the truck's black box.

Flores said he found no evidence that Alex attempted to break before striking Caleb.

Caleb's family attorney asked the detective, "In fact, looking at the video, we see no effort on part of the driver to stop before he hits the bicycle, true?"

Flores replied that he did not attempt to stop. Additionally, the detective stated that Alex was not alcohol or drug tested because he had no indication that the teen was intoxicated at the time of the crime. The detective said no FARO laser scans of the crash scene were conducted by police. FARO scans help analyze what happens in an accident.

Alex's brother, Orlando, was never formally interviewed by the Pharr Police Department according to Flores.

The last witness of the day was Caleb's father, who cried on the stand as he was shown a video made in memory of his late son.

Both sides rested their case Wednesday.

Jury deliberations are set to begin Thursday at 9:30 a.m.