A judge sentenced Raymond Celaya on Wednesday for a deadly 2021 Northeast Fresno hit-and-run, weeks after a jury convicted him of vehicular manslaughter for the crash that killed Angel Hernandez.
His family knew him as Bubba.
“He was only 10 years old and still had his whole life to live,” family member Irma Murphy said in court.
For several minutes, she read letters from Bubba’s aunt, cousin, and sister. The boy was walking with his family at Friant and Fort Washington near Woodward Park when he got hit.
“I miss my brother,” Murphy read from one letter. “I miss him always. He will forever live in our hearts.”
Bubba’s cousin, Gabriel, described the lasting impact of Bubba’s death, saying it has forever changed him.
“I never spoke the same,” he said. “I never slept the same. It was hard for me at night.”
Celaya remained quiet, mostly with his head down. His voice seemed to waver as he offered a full apology.
“I would just like to apologize to the Hernandez family for this accident,” Celaya said. “I will pray for the family for the rest of my life. I’m so sorry.”
As Celaya branded the crime an “accident,” the judge said it was anything but, highlighting his criminal history and calling his actions “callous.”
“Not only was it a 10-year-old boy. That 10-year-old boy was in the crosswalk on the green,” Fresno County Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Hamilton said. “He was doing the right thing while you were doing everything wrong.”
The judge imposed the maximum sentence of seven years as requested by Bubba’s family.
State policy means Celaya is expected to serve 50 percent, totaling three-and-a-half years-
“It is unbelievable to me that the amount of time you’re going to do is three-and-a-half actual years when you took the life of a 10-year-old who was doing nothing but the right thing,” Judge Hamilton said.
He urged Celaya to take advantage of opportunities in prison to better his life.
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