Paso woman who killed man trying to stop her from driving drunk faces jail time after plea
A Paso Robles woman who accidentally killed a former co-worker who was attempting to stop her from driving drunk faces a year in San Luis Obispo County Jail — and possibly far more — after entering no contest pleas to all charges against her Wednesday.
Sarah Dorothy Hale appeared in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on Wednesday morning to plead no contest to four felony charges: gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving while intoxicated causing injury, driving with a blood alcohol content of more than 0.08, and leaving the scene of a crash.
Hale, 24, was accused of causing fatal injuries to Jose Armando Montes Guillen on Dec. 28, 2018, outside Santa Maria Brewing Co. in Paso Robles.
Montes Guillen, 21, died after he was thrown to the ground by Hale’s vehicle after being part of a group of bystanders attempting to stop Hale from driving, Paso Robles police said at the time.
Hale fled the scene of the fatal crash, but was later found by police at her home, where she was arrested.
Court records show her blood alcohol content at the time was measured at 0.17, more than twice the legal limit to drive.
Montes Guillen later died of his injuries at Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center in San Luis Obispo, within 24 hours of Hale’s release from San Luis Obispo County Jail after posting $100,000 bail.
Montes Guillen, a Liberty High School graduate, was trying to get his life back on track at the time of his death, his family told The Tribune. He worked at the Paso Robles brewery with his father and had plans to continue his education.
His parents clarified that Montes Guillen and Hale were not friends, but had previously worked together at the brewery.
“We’re really, really hurt that he’s not with us and she is free,” Armando Montes told The Tribune in January 2019.
On Wednesday, Hale waived her right to a trial and entered an open plea without any guarantee from prosecutors in which she pleaded no contest to each charge in exchange for no more than one year in San Luis Obispo County Jail and five years of formal supervised probation, court records show.
A 9-year jail term was suspended pending completion of counseling, payment of a still-to-be-decided amount of restitution and other requirements. Should she violate the terms of her probation in any way, Hale could be sent to state prison for nine years.
Should a judge not accept those terms at Hale’s sentencing hearing, she could withdraw the plea.
Her attorney, Earl Conaway, III, declined to comment for this article.
Montes Guillen’s death marked the second for his family in five years. His sister, 19-year-old Jeanette Montes, died in November 2013 in a fiery rollover crash on Highway 101 just north of Highway 46 West.
Jose Montes Guillen was in the car at the time of the crash, along with his younger brother, Jesús David, now 11 years old.
A 2013 Tribune article describes bystanders rushing to the car to pull the three siblings to safety. The boys escaped with minor injuries, but Jeanette Montes was pronounced dead at the scene.
A wrongful death lawsuit filed by Montes Guillen’s family against Hale was filed in September and remains ongoing.
Following her plea Wednesday, Hale will remain out of jail custody until her sentencing hearing April 6.
This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 4:42 PM.
