On New Year’s Day, an alleged drunk driver killed two brothers from Kaufman County who were attempting to assist. According to family relatives, Mario de la Paz, 18, and Fernando de la Paz, 15, were struck while assisting a friend and his family in fixing a flat tire.
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Four people were killed in a crash involving an alleged drunken driver in Mesquite on New Year’s Day.
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Basilio Mares Ortiz, 35, is facing four counts of intoxication manslaughter.
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Family members say Mario de la Paz, 18, and Fernando de la Paz, 15, were helping a friend fix a flat tire when they were hit.
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Four people were killed in a crash involving an alleged drunken driver in Mesquite on New Year’s Day.
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Basilio Mares Ortiz, 35, is facing four counts of intoxication manslaughter.
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Family members say Mario de la Paz, 18, and Fernando de la Paz, 15, were helping a friend fix a flat tire when they were hit.
Texas’s MesquiteOn New Year’s Day, an alleged drunk driver killed two brothers from Kaufman County while they were attempting to assist.
What We Know: The collision on Interstate 20 close to FM 741 in Mesquite claimed the lives of four persons.
Mario and Fernando de la Paz, ages 18 and 15, were called to the scene just after midnight, according to family members, to assist their buddy, 19-year-old Anthony Hernandez, and his father, 47-year-old Arturo Gonzalez, who had pulled their SUV over on the side of the interstate due to a flat tire.
The SUV also included a mother and two kids.
The de la Paz brothers and the SUV they were working on were hit by a truck that veered off the shoulder of I-20 and into a ditch shortly after they arrived.
Outside the automobile, all four individuals were murdered.
There are four charges of intoxication manslaughter against 35-year-old Basilio Mares Ortiz.
What They Say: According to the de la Paz brothers’ family, Ortiz is forgiven.
“Forgiveness is a relief to us,” the boys’ aunt Nereida Diera remarked.
However, the family also wants him to answer for his actions.
“For this to happen, it just came out of nowhere,” said Diera. “We must raise awareness. Don’t drink and drive, indeed.
How You Can Help: Over $40,000 has been raised for the brothers through a GoFundMe page.
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Mesquite Police and some of the victims’ relatives provided the information for this story.
Mesquite Police and some of the victims’ relatives provided the information for this story.
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