Lubbock Man Sentenced for 2021 Manslaughter Charge After Crash

A Lubbock man accused of Manslaughter will not be facing any serious jail time and will instead serve the community. Back in April of 2021 is when now 20-year-old Gabriel Castillo is said to have been driving southbound on an access road on Loop 289 when he veered off the road. It was during that time that Castillo and his passenger, 17-year-old Megan Martinez, struck a pole for a billboard along 34th Street.

At the scene police discovered someone performing CPR on Martinez in an attempt to revive her while Castillo screamed that he was to blame. Martinez was not able to be revived and was declared deceased at the scene. KAMC news reports that the mother of Martinez spoke with police and stating that her daughter and Castillo had been arguing but eventually reconciled before the crash.

During the investigation of that incident it was discovered that Castillo had been driving way above the posted speed limit, 45 MPH, going 83 MPH while the roadway was wet. This caused Castillo to lose control of the vehicle when he tried to avoid traffic and go left but instead going through the median and colliding with a pole.

Just two years after the incident Castillo did plead guilty to Manslaughter and was sentenced to 10 years of community supervision. If Castillo violates any terms of his community supervision he could face up to 10 years of prison instead.