MODESTO, Calif. (KTXL) — A 49-year-old Modesto man was convicted of multiple counts of murder and vehicular manslaughter for the deaths of four people including three children, the office of Stanislaus County District Attorney Birgit Fladager announced Friday.
After a seven-day trial, a jury convicted Felix Ferdin of four counts each of second-degree murder and gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.
Mari Luz Jacinto Hernandez and her three daughters, Yoseline Vega, 10, Eileen Lopez Jacinto, 5, and Alexa Sanchez, 3, were the victims in the case.
According to the district attorney’s office, Ferdin consumed approximately seven beers at a barbeque at this house on June 9, 2019.
During the barbeque, Ferdin became angry and reportedly told attendees, “I don’t care. I’m going to die. I don’t care about nobody.” He then proceeded to get into his vehicle and drive away, the DA said.
When he drove away, the DA said Ferdin hit a parked vehicle and came close to hitting another. Ferdin left the scene and sped down Holm Avenue in Bystrom, the DA said.
Ferdin then proceeded to drive through a stop sign at the intersection of Musick Avenue and Holm Road, which is a residential area in an unincorporated area in Stanislaus County. He continued to speed down Holm Avenue toward an intersection near Herndon Road in Bystrom and reached 78 miles per hour in a 25 mph residential zone, the DA said.
According to the DA, Ferdin drove through a second stop sign on the corner of Holm Avenue and Herndon Road and crashed his vehicle into his home of Hernandez.
Ferdin drove through the wall and into the bedroom where Hernandez and her daughters sleep. When he crashed into the house, Ferdin was driving around 35 mph, the DA said.
After he crashed into the home, Ferdin tried to back his vehicle out of the damaged residence, but it didn’t work. He attempted to walk away, but he was prevented from leaving the scene.
The DA said Ferdin had a blood alcohol content close to twice the legal limit, along with methamphetamine and cocaine found in his blood.
According to the DA, multiple officers, firefighters and medical personnel from different agencies in Stanislaus County and the California Highway Patrol responded to the scene to pull out the victims from the bedroom.
There was an attempt to resuscitate Jacinto Hernandez, Lopez Jacinto and Sanchez, but they later died. Vega was transported by air to UC Davis Medical Center where she was alive for one week but died from severe injuries.
Ferdin’s sentencing is not yet scheduled, but it’ll likely take place in June, the DA said. He’s currently facing a maximum sentence of life in prison.