A California woman has been convicted in a deadly hit-and-run crash that killed a man who was out celebrating his anniversary with his wife.
Stanley Jonathan Arthur Isaacs, 60, suffered catastrophic injuries after he and his wife were struck while walking through a marked, well-lit crosswalk in Laguna Beach, California, on Aug. 11, 2022.
His wife survived with minor injuries and was released from the hospital soon afterward.
The driver, Sysillia Morrison Montes De Oca, was arrested following the crash and has now been convicted more than four years later.
Prosecutors said Montes De Oca was driving with other people in the vehicle shortly before the collision when she allegedly told them she was going to “speed up.”
Moments later, she struck Isaacs and his wife.
The impact was devastating.
Isaacs was thrown into the air and suffered what Deputy District Attorney Justin Kim described as “internal decapitation,” along with a fractured skull, a spinal fracture and severely crushed ribs.
He died from his injuries.
Prosecutors said Montes De Oca left the scene after the crash.
She later returned to the area with a friend and allegedly searched online for information about deadly hit-and-run crashes.
Her vehicle was eventually discovered inside a parking garage before Montes De Oca turned herself in to authorities.
Isaacs’ family remembered him as a beloved husband, father and grandfather.
His obituary described him as a man whose “smile transcended this world” and whose dance moves were “unparalleled.”
He was also a passionate train enthusiast who created an elaborate “Santa’s Winter Wonderland” display every holiday season for his community.
The annual tradition brought Christmas cheer to neighbors, friends and especially his seven grandchildren.
Montes De Oca was convicted of gross vehicular manslaughter, hit-and-run causing permanent and serious injury, and failing to stop following a hit-and-run involving injury or death.
She is scheduled to be sentenced in November.
The conviction brings a major development in a case that began as an anniversary celebration and ended in a horrifying tragedy.
