Tearful father faces family of SLO County boy killed in hit-and-run crash
For the very first time on Wednesday, Zachary Bernal looked into the eyes of the family whose 11-year-old son he killed.
“Mr. Bernal, you get to live knowing, no matter the situation, you still have your children with you. We hope that you never have to go through what we are going through,” Maria Contreras, José Gutiérrez’s aunt said as the middle schooler’s parents, Maria Orozco and Francisco Gutiérrez, held eachother crying as they stood behind her in the San Luis Obispo courtroom.
Bernal continued facing Contreras, maintaining eye contact as he quietly cried and wiped tears.
When it was his turn to speak, Bernal paused for around 10 seconds before taking a deep breath.
“As a father, I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like to lose a child the way José’s family did. It must be absolutely devastating, heartbreaking and something no parent, no family and no community should have to go through,” he said. “I think about that pain every single day.”
Bernal was sentenced to seven years in state prison for hitting and killing José as he and a friend walked home from Atascadero Middle School on March 14. While it’s not the maximum sentence for the crime, it was the maximum sentence San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Crystal Seiler could impose.
For Bernal to receive the maximum sentence of nine years and eight months, the crime would have to have included some kind of aggravating factor that outweighed the mitigating factors, Seiler said.
But that was not the case.
Mitigating factors are elements that the judge would consider for a lighter sentence, while aggravating factors are elements that the judge would consider for a heavier sentence.
“The maximum sentence under the law, as the case was pleaded and the plea was entered, from a human perspective, is woefully inadequate,” San Luis Obispo County Assistant District Attorney Eric Dobroth said in court.
He added that Bernal being under the influence of fentanyl only highlights the devastating impact the drug not only has on the individuals who use it, but those around them as well.
“Mr. Bernal may be fighting for his life but at least he had the opportunity to do so. In this particular case, José did not,” Dobroth said. “If Mr. Bernal is truly remorseful, he will honor the life of José through sobriety.”
Tearful family members address Bernal face to face for first time
Francisco Gutiérrez and Maria Orozco, who wore matching shirts with their son’s photo printed on it, both addressed Bernal in court.
Gutiérrez said Bernal destroyed his family’s life when he hit and killed José with his pickup truck.
“He was just an innocent little boy, but you did what you did and you fled, leaving him there to die,” Gutiérrez said.
He said nothing in the world could justify what happened to his son.
“You were a coward by fleeing, leaving my baby there,” Gutiérrez told Bernal before asking the judge for justice.
Through tears, Orozco said living every day without her son has been very painful.
“It is a pain I cannot explain to you, having to live day after day, remembering my son, remembering him in my mind, seeing him there laying on the ground without life and thinking that they could have done something to help him at that time and he didn’t,” Orozco said in her statement. “No mother deserves to go through this pain, having to see their son without life.”
Orzoco said her son had a lot of dreams he hoped to achieve — including becoming a police officer. He loved to help people, she said.
She said receiving the news her son was dead when she was waiting for him to arrive home from school “destroyed my life and destroyed my heart, my mother’s heart.”
José’s younger brother, Luis, cries a lot because his brother is gone, Orozco said.
“Where is José?” Luis asks his mother from time to time.
“It crushes my soul not being able to answer that question,” Orzoco said.
Contreras, José’s aunt, asked Bernal to face her and José’s family as she gave her statement, which he did.
“You as a father yourself should know our children are our miracle of God,” she said, adding that no matter what Bernal’s problems were, he did not have the right to drive a vehicle while under the influence of drugs.
“You and only you chose to get behind the wheel of that truck, resulting in the death of José, an innocent child that was on his way home from school to his mother, his father and his brother, as he did every day,” Contreras said.
She said that José’s best friend — whom José saved by yelling “look out!” — has also been suffering.
“it’s a battle that he has to work with every day of his life, seeing his best friend die in front of him and not be able to do anything about it,” she said. “A little kid that did not deserve that as well.”
She asked the judge for the maximum sentence.
Man says he takes full responsibility for taking child’s life
Bernal spent the majority of the hearing weeping quietly with his eyes closed, looking down.
He faced the family when he was asked to, wiping away tears, and then it was his turn to speak.
“I can never find the right words to describe the amount of guilt, shame and sadness I carry with me every day,” he said. “If I could trade my life for José’s, I would.”
Bernal said he prays for God to bring comfort to José’s family and community. He also prays for God to help them through their grief and watch over them.
“In the many painful days ahead, I pray they’re able to find some kind of peace,” he said.
Bernal said he takes full responsibility for killing José and was ready to serve whatever sentence the judge decided.
He said he is committed to learning, growing and becoming a better man for himself, his kids and his family.
“I believe that even in the worst situations, there is a chance to create something good,” Bernal said. “I’m determined to use this time to become a better person, and most importantly a better father.”
Seiler sentenced Bernal to seven years total for the crime — two years for vehicular manslaughter for driving under the influence and five years for fleeing the scene of the crime.
She also imposed a one-year sentence for felony hit-and-run and a 364-day sentence for a misdemeanor fentanyl possession charge, but both of those sentences will be served at the same time as the seven-year sentence.
Because vehicular manslaughter is not considered a violent crime under California law, Bernal will serve half of his sentence with good behavior, which is around three and a half years.
“Mr. Bernal, I hope that you will spend the rest of your life trying to outweigh what you took from this world with what you are going to give to the world,” Seiler said in her closing remarks.
This story was originally published June 25, 2025 at 4:16 PM.
