‘I went through it all alone,’ teenager tells Oceanside man who killed family members in drunken car crash – NBC 7 San Diego

In a Vista courtroom, justice was served Thursday after five long years.

In 2019, a car crash left three people dead and three others – all from the same family – injured. The man responsible, Mason Fish, was sentenced on Thursday.

NBC 7 was present as both parties shared their grief.

“He is sentenced to 15 years in prison,” a judge read.

Mason pleaded guilty to several counts of being the driver when his Toyota Tacoma truck collided with a Mazda sedan at an intersection in Oceanside.

Thirteen-year-old Kelly Velasco, who was riding in the car, read a victim impact statement to the court.

“Everyone in my family is devastated by this car accident, especially me,” Kelly said.

“I forgive this young man for his mistake,” another relative said in a separate victim impact statement. “However, God and his divine justice can ensure that justice is done.”

Kelly lost her mother, 40-year-old Petra Arango, her aunt Eloina Arango, 56, and her 74-year-old grandmother Rufina Rodriguez in the crash.

Kelly survived along with her father and grandfather.

“I went through everything alone,” Kelly said in court. “Every day when people talk about their mother taking them to prom dress shopping, through everything, up until graduation – I didn’t have that person. Instead, I sat in my room and cried because I lost a lot of people I cared about because of his mistake.”

Prosecutors allege that Fish had multiple drugs in his system. In his apology letter and at previous hearings, Fish said he was distraught over his grandmother’s death.

On Thursday he apologized personally.

“I am sorry from the bottom of my heart,” Fish said. “I hope you can begin to heal. Please know that you are in my thoughts and prayers, and I will carry the burden of your loss with me for the rest of my life.”

“Regardless of the verdict, three human lives have been lost and will never be returned,” the judge said.

Fish was found guilty of multiple counts of manslaughter while under the influence of alcohol or drugs, driving causing personal injury, drug possession, and driving without a license.