Michigan man gets probation for fatal 2003 drunk driving crash

Juan Jose Gomez

A Michigan man has been sentenced to 180 days in prison as part of his probation after pleading guilty to driving intoxicated, crashing into another vehicle and killing a woman 20 years ago.

Juan Jose Gomez, now 43, pleaded guilty to one count of intoxication manslaughter with a vehicle and two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon on Wednesday. He was sentenced to 10 years probation, but has to spend 180 days in jail.

On Feb. 23, 2003, Gomez drove drunk, hit and killed 19-year-old Jennifer Lee Ybarra and injured two others: Jaime Medina, who was left paralyzed, and Janet Serna, who has since died from unrelated reasons.

Gomez wasn’t indicted until Aug. 11, 2020.

Former District Attorney Ricardo Rodriguez Jr. said at the time the indictment was issued that they weren’t sure why the case went cold.

“Did the office know about it back then, about this case? Yes, we knew about it. Why it went cold? We are still trying to figure that out in the sense of why the case never made its way over to the office,” Rodriguez said then.

In 2003, former District Attorney Rene Guerra was in charge.

Testimony from Texas Ranger B.J. Hill revealed that the crash happened on a street where about 50 to 60 vehicles had gathered for a race.

The crash happened at about 10:23 p.m. on FM 2812 where the vehicles had parked on the north and south side of the road in order to illuminate the roadway with their headlights, according to Hill.

Gomez was traveling toward the race, which he was unaware was happening, and rear-ended a vehicle occupied by Ybarra and four others that was stopped on the roadway.

Hill said Gomez was knocked unconscious before being taken to the hospital. It was there they found Gomez’s blood alcohol content to be 0.15, nearly twice the legal limit.

In Oct. 2020, Gomez surrendered at the Hidalgo County Detention Center after U.S. Marshals arrested him in Michigan that September.

A Michigan judge released him on bond on the condition that he turn himself in to authorities in Hidalgo County.

If Gomez violates his probation, he could face two to 20 years in prison.

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