Man Gets 7 Years For DUI Crash That Killed 10-Year-Old
CHICAGO (STMW) -- A man was sentenced to seven years in prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to being drunk when he caused a crash that fatally crushed a 10-year-old boy as he walked in the North Side Rogers Park neighborhood last year.
Martin Candia, 31, of the 1500 block of West Fargo was driving on May 29, 2010, as 10-year-old Calvin Santos was walking to visit his aunt in the 6900 block of North Ashland Avenue, authorities said.
On Tuesday, Candia pleaded guilty to aggravated DUI and was sentenced to 7 years in prison, Cook County State's Attorney's office spokesman Andy Conklin said.
Santos was walking between the SUVs when the van that Candia was driving slammed into one of the vehicles, pushing it forward and crushing the youngster between them.
The boy, who was with his 3-year-old sister and his father at the time, died about two hours later.
Candia was initially charged with felony drunken driving and reckless homicide, as well as several traffic offenses, including driving on a suspended license.
Following the crash, he had a blood-alcohol level of .109 -- above the .08 legal limit -- prosecutor Melissa Meana said during Candia's bond hearing. He also failed a field sobriety test, she said.
Police found two empty beer bottles in his van, court records show.
Candia, a restaurant worker, allegedly ran a red light, then lost control of the Chevy van and slammed into the parked SUV. The impact rolled the black Ford Explorer forward into a Toyota SR5, striking Calvin just as he walked between them.
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