Her actions led DUI victim to be permanently blind. She’s going to prison
Manuel Russ’s life changed two years ago when he was involved in an accident that left him in a coma for several weeks and led to permanent blindness and seizures.
Russ was driving on Carpenter Road around 5 a.m. when Charysteena Urbina, who was under the influence of alcohol and drugs, drove into the opposite lane of traffic and hit Russ’s vehicle head-on.
Urbina admitted and pleaded guilty on Sept. 11 to inflicting great bodily injury upon Russ, causing him to become comatose and paralyzed due to brain injury. She also pleaded not guility to two counts of personally inflicting great bodily injury upon the two passengers in her vehicle, according to a press release.
She was sentenced to 10 years in state prison last month, Stanislaus County District Attorney Birgit Fladager announced.
Russ had a limb amputated and had several reconstructive surgeries after the accident and uses his life challenges to speak out at schools and other events on the dangers and lifelong effects of driving under the influence.
At the time of the accident, Urbina’s blood alcohol content was at 0.159%, almost twice the legal limit of .08%.
Urbina was also on probation for a 2015 misdemeanor for driving under the influence conviction when the accident occurred and also had pending charges for driving on a suspended or revoked license after being convicted of drunk driving.
