A 29-year-old repeat drunken driver was sentenced Tuesday to a dozen years in state prison for causing an Alhambra collision last December that injured several bystanders looking at holiday decorations.
Ismael Soto pleaded no contest in September to driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury within 10 years of two other DUI offenses; driving with a .08 percent blood alcohol content causing injury within 10 years; driving when the privilege was suspended or revoked for a DUI conviction; and driving a vehicle not equipped with an ignition interlock device when his driving privilege was restricted.
Soto also admitted special allegations that he inflicted great bodily injury to more than one victim in the commission of the crime; drove at an excessive speed; had a blood alcohol content in excess of .20 percent; was previously convicted in 2013 of driving while having a .08 percent or higher blood-alcohol content; and driving when the privilege was suspended or revoked.
Deputy District Attorney Sonia Govea, who prosecuted the case, said that on the evening of Dec. 14, 2014, Soto drove while under the influence of alcohol and crashed his car into parked vehicles.
The collision injured a group of people who were looking at holiday decorations in the vicinity of the crash site near Fremont Avenue and Poplar Boulevard, the prosecutor said.
Soto pleaded no contest to all charges in an open plea, meaning his sentence was not negotiated with the District Attorney's Office.
