VISTA, CA — A man who drove drunk and crashed into another vehicle in Escondido, killing a 13-year-old boy who was riding in his car, was sentenced Wednesday to 12 years and eight months in state prison.
Alexander Tito Oroz, 22, pleaded guilty to gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and other charges for the April 27, 2024, crash that killed Rodrigo Tapia Jr. The nearly 13-year prison term was stipulated to by both sides prior to Wednesday’s sentencing hearing.
Prosecutors said Oroz was driving around 120 mph and ran a red light just before the crash at the intersection of North Broadway and Country Club Lane.
Along with the manslaughter count, Oroz pleaded guilty to DUI causing injury and driving under the influence while under 21, as he was 20 years old at the time of the fatal crash.
The victim, who was a student at Quantum Academy in Escondido, was siblings with Oroz’s girlfriend. The boy’s sister was also riding in Oroz’s car and sustained injuries in the crash.
Dozens of the victim’s family members and friends attended Oroz’s sentencing hearing in Vista and described him in court as a straight-A student who had big dreams that were cut short.
He was known affectionately as “Junior” among those who knew him, according to his mother Norma Tapia, because he felt his full name “made him sound too old.”
Tapia said her son sought to become a professional baseball player or serve in the Navy when he grew up and that his kind nature and selflessness earned him the admiration of family members, peers, and his teachers.
“Junior wasn’t just my son. He was my companion,” she said.
On the night of his death, Junior and his sister both urged Oroz to slow down, but “he ignored them,” his mother said.
The boy’s father, Rodrigo Tapia, said that upon learning of his son’s death, “I felt like the world fell apart because it was something I never expected in my life to hear.”
Ana Lopez, Junior’s sister, said her brother was always positive and ready to help others no matter how busy he was.
“All we have now are just those beautiful memories (of him,)” she said.
Lopez also read a letter from another of Junior’s sisters, Jasmine Tapia, who was riding in the car during the crash.
“I still can’t believe that he’s gone,” Tapia wrote. “I lost my brother and my best friend. I didn’t know what actual heartbreak felt like until that night.”
Jamie Russo, Junior’s teacher for both Kindergarten and 4th grade, said the boy had “big dreams” and “big goals.”
Russo said, “We all knew he was going to go on to do great things. I knew that he would someday really make a difference in people’s lives.”
Oroz did not make a statement during the hearing and kept his gaze lowered throughout, including while a video was played in court featuring photos and video clips of the boy’s life, prompting Superior Court Judge Daniel Link to tell Oroz to look up and watch the video.
Link said the sentencing was one of many he’d presided over in which he saw “wonderful families and friends and communities be torn apart by the irresponsibility of one individual.” The judge also said there was “truly an epidemic” of driving under the influence in San Diego County and the country at large.
Though he said there was “no right sentence” for what happened, Link said he hoped Oroz would use his time in prison to reflect and learn from what happened and “how to redeem yourself from this terrible moment.”
By JASON KUROSU / City News Service