TYLER, Texas — A Tyler man was sentenced to five years in prison after pleading guilty to driving at speeds of over 100 mph when his car collided with a truck, killing his passenger in October 2021.
Jose Manuel Esparza, 25, entered a guilty plea on Wednesday in the 114th District Court in connection with the Oct. 14, 2021 wreck that killed Pablo Avila, according to judicial records. After pleading guilty, Esparza was then sentenced to five years in prison.
According to the arrest affidavit, the wreck occurred in the 2200 block of the W SW Loop 323 and left Avila in critical condition. The detective was told Avila would most likely die.
In the affidavit, the officer said he was told a Corvette, which was the vehicle Esparza was driving, was traveling at a high rate of speed and ran into the back of the pickup, causing the truck to spin and stop in the median. The Corvette then went over the median into oncoming traffic and struck the white car that was moving east on the Loop.
When the brakes were applied, the car was going 113 mph and it would've taken the average vehicle 600 feet to stop. The speed limit for that area is also 50 mph, the affidavit stated.
After reviewing the crash data report made by another officer, the detective saw the Corvette was traveling over 100 mph as it neared the pickup and just two seconds before the crash.
About five seconds before the wreck, the crash report states Esparza “floored” the accelerator, which police said indicated the driver’s intent to travel at the high speed, the affidavit stated.
The police document stated Esparza was at fault.
When the officer first went to the hospital, he learned Esparza had minor injuries, while Avila was in a trauma room and later admitted to the ICU. On Oct. 16, the investigator was told Avila had died, the affidavit read.