Man convicted of 5 DWIs handed 50-year sentence, Montgomery County DA says
Habitual felony offenders may face increased punishments, the DA said.
A man who was previously charged five separate times for driving while intoxicated was handed a 50-year sentence, according to the Montgomery County District Attorney's Office.
Eugenio Les Zavala, 34, was sentenced on Tuesday by a jury that found him guilty of DWI for the third time or more.
A traffic stop conducted by the Montgomery County Sheriff's Office landed Zavala in jail and led to his fifth charge of DWI, the DA said. During the investigation, deputies said Zavala refused to perform field sobriety tests, and it was only after a search warrant was obtained that detectives found Zavala had a blood alcohol concentration nearly twice the legal limit.
During the punishment phase of Zavala's trial, the DA's office said jurors considered Zavala's previous DWIs, described by prosecutors as a pattern of a habitual felony offender, to determine his sentence.
According to the district attorney, the punishment for those with prior felony convictions and habitual felony offender statuses ranges from 25 years to life imprisonment.
The DA's office said that jurors set Zavala's punishment to 50 years in prison.
Assistant DA James Roberts, who prosecuted the case, said that Zavala's five DWIs told a story of repeated chances becoming repeated choices.
“When someone repeatedly chooses to endanger others, our responsibility is clear: act decisively before another family pays the price,” District Attorney Michael Holley said.
