Jurors decline to indict Fort Worth man in traffic deaths of 3 Trimble Tech graduates
A Tarrant County grand jury has declined to indict a 24-year-old Fort Worth man accused of causing the August traffic deaths of three teenagers who had recently graduated from Trimble Tech High School.
Grand jurors returned a no-bill against Miguel A. Campos Maravillas on Feb. 21.
Maravillas had been charged with three counts of manslaughter in the deaths of 18-year-olds Natalie Castro, Yosmeri Mendez and Dianaluisa Lopez following a crash on Aug. 18. The three young women had graduated from Trimble Tech in June, according to Fort Worth school officials.
Initially, Maravillas was accused of speeding when his vehicle collided with a car that was occupied by five people at the time of the crash.
“Not every car crash results in a criminal prosecution,” said Tarrant County Assistant District Attorney Jim Hudson in an email to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “After a detailed investigation and expert examination of all the evidence, this crash was determined to be a tragic accident. Our prayers remain with the families and friends of those involved.”
Maravillas could not be reached for comment.
“It was a tragedy,” said Brian Goza of Arlington, Maravillas’ attorney, on Tuesday. “Three young girls lost their lives. No one knew what the grand jury was going to do, but I believe they were fair.”
The crash occurred about 2:30 a.m. on Aug. 18 at Rodeo Street and Mansfield Highway in Fort Worth, according to an arrest warrant obtained by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in September. The teens’ car had slowly gone through a stop sign, the warrant says, when Maravillas — who was traveling at an excessive rate of speed — hit them.
A video of the crash taken from a nearby residence was obtained by Fort Worth police. It showed a red 2014 Nissan Sentra carrying the teens was heading west on Rodeo Street when it eased into the intersection of Mansfield Highway, making a southwest turn, the warrant says.
The car, though it slowed into the intersection, didn’t stop at the stop sign, police said. A black 2016 Buick Verano driven by Maravillas then struck the Nissan.
Mendez and Lopez were pronounced dead at the scene. The three other people in the car were taken to a local hospital, police said.
Castro, who was driving the Nissan, died nine days later at a Fort Worth hospital, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office. The others who were in the car survived.
Witnesses to the crash also described this series of events to officers, police said.
The day after the crash, a Fort Worth detective spoke on the phone to Maravillas, who said he believed he had been driving about 50 mph in the 45 mph zone, the warrant says. The detective told him he needed to analyze the Airbag Control Module in his car, which records vehicle data, including speeds before an airbag deploys.
Maravillas came to the detective’s office and signed a consent form for the ACM in his Buick to be imaged, according to the warrant. The imaging reportedly showed the Buick was traveling 73 mph three seconds before the crash.
Police also filed a search warrant to image the ACM in Castro’s red Nissan, the warrant says. The results indicated the Nissan was traveling 16 mph in the intersection.
This story includes information from Star-Telegram archives.
