Delaware
Indy man gets 24 years for role in Delaware County crash that killed Fort Wayne couple
MUNCIE, Ind. — An Indianapolis man who was drunk when he caused a fatal head-on crash on Interstate 69 in Delaware County was sentenced Monday to 24 years in prison.
Walter Saucedo-Mendoza — who will observe his 32nd birthday this week — had pleaded guilty in Delaware Circuit Court 1 to two counts of causing death while driving while intoxicated and a single count of criminal recklessness.
According to Indiana State Police, Saucedo-Mendoza’s Kia Forte was traveling northbound in the interstate’s southbound lanes on Nov. 12, 2023, when it collided head-on with a southbound Chevrolet Malibu driven by Victoria Elaine Cox, 32, of Fort Wayne.
Cox and her husband, Evan Daniel Cox, 26, were pronounced dead at the scene, near the 234-mile marker and the Indiana 32/67 interchange in Daleville.
Authorities said Saucedo-Mendoza’s blood-alcohol content was measured at 0.186 soon after the collision. In Indiana, a motorist with a BAC of 0.08 or higher is considered intoxicated.
State police said the Indianapolis man’s car was traveling at 88 mph at the time of the crash.
At Monday’s hearing, Judge Judi Calhoun imposed a pair of 11-year sentences, to be served consecutively, for Saucedo-Mendoza’s DWI convictions.
He received a two-year sentence, also to be served consecutively, for the criminal recklessness conviction, which stemmed from damage sustained by a third vehicle.
Calhoun said she took exception to references to the interstate crash as an “accident.”
“This wasn’t an accident,” the judge said. “It was a crime.”
Calhoun said Saucedo-Mendoza made decisions both to become intoxicated and to then drive.
She said the “carnage and destruction” from his actions would “never be forgotten.”
Deputy prosecutor Steve Sneed recommended that the Indianapolis man receive a maximum sentence of 26 years and six months in prison.
He said Saucedo-Mendoza’s crimes had taken “two wonderful, amazing, truly gifted individuals from this Earth.”
According to Sneed, the Indianapolis man began his wrong-way trip up the interstate’s southbound lanes in Hamilton County and traveled through Madison County before his deadly encounter with the Fort Wayne couple near Daleville.
Four witnesses — the parents of both crash victims — testified about the devastating impact the couple’s deaths had on both family and friends.
Angela Schaefer, Victoria Cox’s mother, urged Calhoun to “please send a message to society” in sentencing Saucedo-Mendoza.
“He snuffed out one of the brightest lights who ever walked this Earth,” she said of her late daughter.
Evan Cox’s father, Dobie, also urged the judge to send “a message that says choosing to get behind the wheel impaired … will not be tolerated.”
Saucedo-Mendoza said he was “extremely remorseful for my actions.”
He indicated he was contending with personal problems at the time of the crash and maintained he had not consumed alcohol since that time. He also said he since had undergone counseling and attended Alcoholics Anonymous meetings.
“I understand there are no excuses for what happened,” he said, also noting that he was seriously injured in the collision.
His defense attorney recommended the Indianapolis man receive a 10-year sentence.
Douglas Walker is a news reporter at The Star Press. Contact him at 765-213-5851 or at dwalker@muncie.gannett.com.