Drunk dad charged with his daughter’s murder in New Year’s Eve crash, Texas cops say
A dad in the Houston area is charged with the murder of his 11-year-old daughter, who was riding with him on New Year’s Eve and died in a wreck when her father sped through a red light, according to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office.
Her dad, 33-year-old Jorge Ledezma Echavarria, had more than twice the legal limit of alcohol in his bloodstream at the time of the crash, according to the Houston Chronicle. The legal limit in Texas is .08, and police say Echavarria’s BAC was .20, the newspaper reported.
His daughter Vanessa was sitting in the back passenger-side seat of Echavarria’s Chevrolet Tahoe at the time of the crash, which was reported at about 8:20 Monday night, the release states.
“Ledezma disregarded a traffic control device, entered the intersection, and collided” with a Ford Expedition on the northbound feeder road, it continues.
A Life Flight helicopter took Vanessa from the scene of the wreck, at U.S. 90 and East Sam Houston Parkway, to Memorial Hermann Hospital in Houston, where she was pronounced dead, according to court records.
Echavarria’s wife and the couple’s 15-year-old son were also in the car. They were rushed to the hospital, both in critical condition, KPRC reported. His wife had sustained multiple pelvic fractures, and Vanessa’s 15-year-old brother is in a coma, according to KTRK.
The resident of nearby Magnolia, Texas was also charged with two counts of intoxication assault on his wife and son, according to court records. If either of them die, one or both of those charges could be upgraded to murder.
Vanessa died at about 10 p.m. Monday night, just two hours before the start of the new year, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Echavarria is being held without bond, according to jail records.
This story was originally published January 2, 2019 at 3:27 PM with the headline "Drunk dad charged with his daughter’s murder in New Year’s Eve crash, Texas cops say."
