A Texas man who plowed his car into a crowd of migrants outside a shelter in the border town of Brownsville last year, killing eight people, was convicted Friday of eight counts of drunk driving manslaughter and sentenced to 60 years in prison, prosecutors said.
According to Edward Sandoval, a prosecutor with the Cameron County District Attorney's Office, the jury returned a guilty verdict against George Alvarez, 35, of Brownsville, after a week-long trial.
According to witnesses and authorities, Alvarez ran a red light in his Range Rover around 8:30 a.m. on May 7, 2023, and drove into a crowd of newly arrived migrants outside the Ozanam Center, a homeless shelter in Brownsville that houses many migrants.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found a horrific scene. Six people who were struck by a car died at the scene and two later died at a hospital, Brownsville Police Chief Felix Sauceda said last year. Ten others were seriously injured.
Sandoval said evidence showed Alvarez was using cocaine at the time and was driving recklessly under the influence. Investigators have not found that Alvarez had intent to kill, Sandoval said.
“As a result of the defendant's spontaneous acts and poor choices, eight innocent people lost their lives in a cruel and horrific way and the lives of an additional 10 innocent people have been permanently impacted and changed,” the district attorney's office said in a statement.
An attorney for Alvarez did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment Friday.
According to the district attorney's office, Alvarez testified in his own interest and “refused to accept any responsibility and claimed the trial was not fair to him.”
Sauceda said last year that Alvarez had been arrested multiple times on charges including burglary, assault, theft and drunk driving.
A group of people detained the driver, who tried to flee after the crash, said Aider Hernandez, one of those who stopped the driver.
Police said Alvarez refused to cooperate with the investigation after he was arrested. The arresting officer reported hearing Alvarez say “Se me atravesalon” (Spanish for “They got in my way”) shortly after the crash, according to the police report. The officer added that Alvarez appeared to be visibly intoxicated.
“His eyes were droopy and watery and he had a look of fatigue on his face,” officers wrote.
Hernandez said many of the victims traveled together from Venezuela to Texas and became like family along the way.
Victor Maldonado, executive director of the Ozanam center, said last year that migrants at the center often stay for just a few days while they work to secure transportation elsewhere. “They do odd jobs, they earn a little bit of money so they can move on,” Maldonado said.