BREAKING UPDATE: Hays County Jury Hands Down 99-year Sentence In DWI Conviction

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On October 13, 2016, Jose Marin, 64, was sentenced to 99 years in prison after being found guilty of felony DWI on October 11, 2016.

The State presented evidence of seven previous DWI convictions.

Marin had been convicted previously in 1983, 1984, 1986 (when he was sentenced to 33 months in prison), 1990 (when he was sentenced to 5 years in prison), 1991, and twice in 1998 (when he was sentenced to 10 years and 25 years in prison in separate cases for offenses occurring about 3 months apart).

He was released from prison in 2003, and was on parole when he was arrested on January 17, 2015, after Hays County Deputy Ben Tureaud (who has since transferred to the San Marcos Police Department) observed him driving 75 in a 45 mile an hour zone and weaving.

The jury of nine men and three women deliberated for three hours on Tuesday before rendering a guilty verdict.

At the punishment hearing on Wednesday, the state presented the evidence of the defendant’s prior convictions and the jury deliberated for just under six hours before returning a sentence of 99 years in prison.

In closing on punishment, lead prosecutor Jennifer Stalbaum urged the jury to consider that after having been to prison three times previously, that serving the remainder of his life in prison was the only way to prevent further drunk driving by Mr. Marin.

In responding to the defense’s admonition to jurors that they would need to render a decision which would allow them to sleep at night, Stalbaum showed the jurors a series of mug shots of Mr. Marin from each of his arrests and entreated the jurors to send Mr. Marin to prison so that “we can all sleep at night.”

Hays County Criminal District Attorney expressed his appreciation for the work on the case by the jurors and by Ms. Stalbaum, and also the Hays County Sheriff’s Department, Assistant DA Michael McCarthy, who assisted Stalbaum on the case, and DA’s Investigator Matt Grantham.