A 37-year-old illegal immigrant with a history of drunk driving convictions has been sentenced to 24 years in prison after killing a mother and her son in a high-speed, alcohol-fueled crash in Colorado last December.
José Guadalupe Menjivar-Alas, a citizen of El Salvador, pleaded guilty to two counts of vehicular homicide stemming from the fatal crash on December 12, 2023.
Driving at an estimated speed of 80 to 100 miles per hour, Menjivar was intoxicated when he struck the victims, according to Fox 31.
Menjivar’s criminal history reveals a troubling pattern of dangerous behavior. Records show he had been deported from the United States four times—once in 2009, twice in 2012, and again in 2014. Despite his removal, Menjivar managed to re-enter the country repeatedly.
The Boulder District Attorney’s Office stated that Menjivar had been convicted of at least five DUIs since 2007, including four in Boulder, Colorado. Court documents also reveal he had pleaded guilty in three other cases related to impaired driving.
Just days before the fatal accident, Menjivar appeared in court on December 8, 2023, for another DUI-related case. Prosecutors argued he posed a clear danger to the community and sought an immediate sentence of