A San Martin man who was driving drunk when he caused the death of a Morgan Hill man and serious injuries to his fiancée nearly two years ago pleaded no contest to three felony charges at the Morgan Hill Courthouse.
Raymond Escudero, IV, 25, has been in custody at Santa Clara County Jail since the Aug. 30, 2014 accident that left Jason McArthur dead at the age of 34. The accident occurred on Santa Teresa Boulevard just south of Native Dancer Drive, according to police. Escudero, driving an Acura, struck McArthur’s Jeep Wrangler, causing both vehicles to lose control. Both vehicles were traveling northbound.
McArthur was pronounced dead at the scene. Escudero was uninjured but his passenger suffered minor injuries, according to authorities.
The accident also caused severe injuries to McArthur’s passenger and fiancée, a 43-year-old Morgan Hill woman.
On Jan. 4, just before the case was set to go to trial, Escudero pleaded no contest to three felony charges related to the accident, according to Deputy District Attorney Alexandra Ellis. Specifically, he pleaded no contest to vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and two felony DUI charges.
The suspect also pleaded no contest to an unrelated hit and run charge from 2011, Ellis said.
A plea of no contest is the same as a plea of guilty, Ellis added.
Escudero will be sentenced at a Feb. 19 hearing at the Morgan Hill Courthouse. He faces a maximum sentence of 13 years, eight months in prison.
