A North Texas man has been sentenced to 13 years in prison after being found guilty of racing in a crash that killed a 9-year-old girl in Pleasant Grove.
The jury came back with the sentence just before noon on Friday.
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WATCH HEREThe jury also handed down a $5,000 fine to Jackson along with the sentence.
Ricky Jackson was found guilty of racing by a unanimous verdict after nearly two hours of deliberations on Thursday morning.
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SIGN UP Jackson was charged with racing on a highway and causing serious bodily injury after he crashed his orange Dodge Challenger into a sedan on May 24, 2019.
Olivia Mendez, 9, died on the scene after being ejected from her family's vehicle. Police said Jackson and two other drivers were racing each other on Lake June Road.
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The victim’s cousin, aunt and uncles took the stand to address Jackson during the victim impact statement portion of the sentencing phase.
“I’m sure you wish this never happened,” said the girl’s aunt Monica Calderon. “But here’s the thing: Olivia isn’t here to make wishes.”
While Jackson’s family chose to leave the courtroom after the sentencing, two jurors opted to sit in the gallery to hear the family address Jackson.
“I’ve had a lot of time to think of what I should say to you, but you’ve taken so much from me, I have nothing left for you,” said the victim’s mother Marisol Gomez.
Gomez said she hopes he takes accountability for his actions and ‘turns to God.’
“I only ask one thing of you,” she said ending her statement. “I want you to think about Olivia every single day for the rest of your life.”
In an unexpected moment, Jackson responded to Gomez saying: “I do. I do.”
Gomez spoke with NBC 5 after the emotional end to the criminal trial and said she did hear Jackson’s response.
“I hope he does, and I hope he takes accountability because he has not taken accountability,” she said.
The horrific crash also left Olivia’s little sister, who is now 7 years old, with irreversible brain damage, according to family.
Jackson’s defense attorney Tom Pappas spoke with NBC 5 after sentencing, stressing his client is devastated.
“The man has attempted two suicides over what happened. I don’t think anybody can say that he isn’t sorry, that he doesn’t regret what happened,” said Pappas.
Jackson, he says, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease about two years ago and his health has deteriorated greatly.
Jurors sentenced Jackson to 13 years.
However, because the charge did not include an aggravator like ‘with a deadly weapon,’ Jackson could be released in as little as 3-and-a-half years.
Pappas says everyone in this case is a victim in this case, including Jackson.
“I think so. I think he made a horrible decision. He’s a criminal. The jury has said he broke the law and he did break the law and lives and families are ruined,” said Pappas. “The most sympathetic and the biggest victim is the family of the little girl that died. All of us have kids or grandkids, that’s tragic and horrible and it doesn’t just boil down to who’s the victim or who’s the bigger victim. Tragedies sometimes are bigger than systems and bigger than words and this is one of those tragedies.”
Pappas is not aware if his client is currently on ‘suicide watch.’
