When it comes to a DUI charge, there are several ways that a person can handle it. The first thing, of course, is to consult an attorney. They will go over the facts of the case and advise on the best way to handle it. There are, essentially, three ways a person can plead initially. Those ways are pleading guilty, not guilty, and no contest. If one pleads guilty, of course, the case is over then and will be handed over for sentencing. When one pleads not guilty, their case will be prepared for trial unless the prosecution and defense can come to an agreement. The final way is to plead no contest. This means that a person is conceding the charge but is not admitting guilt.
23-year-old Absadi Tewelde Kidane was convicted on Monday on charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. The charge stems from the death of a pedestrian in an auto accident that occurred in Santa Monica in 2017.
According to witnesses, at around 3:30 p.m. on March 21, 2017, Kidane’s vehicle raced into a parking lot next to the Santa Monica courthouse. It drove through the parking gate and struck a male as he was paying for parking at a kiosk.
After striking the victim, Kidane fled the scene, then struck a parked car. He then ran from the police.
40-year-old Donald Thomas, Jr., who was from Hawthorne, was taken to a hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries.
In addition to the gross vehicular manslaughter charge, he was convicted of a charge relating to resisting an executive officer.
Kidane initially pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Now that he has been convicted, the sanity portion of the trial will begin.
Kidane has been held since his arrest on $2 million bond.
