An OC man was struck and killed by a drunk driver the day after he pled guilty to his own third DUI offense.
According to the Orange County Register, Haitham Gamal, 38, was hit by a 2001 Acura while he was riding his bicycle in Dana Point on April 29th. It is alleged that the 19-year-old who was driving the Acura was drunk at the time of the collision. Gamal was pronounced dead at the scene while the 19-year-old driver the Acura and his 18-year-old passenger were treated for moderate injuries.
The collision occured the day after Gamal appeared at the Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana to enter a guilty plea for a 2013 DUI of his own. The conviction was Gamal’s third. He had been sentenced to five years of informal probation and 45 days in jail.
Gamal had suffered two prior DUI convictions in 2005 and 2009. In 2012, Gamal pleaded guilty to public intoxication.
“A lot of my clients are in denial. He wasn’t,” Gamal’s attorney, Walter Cole told the Orange County Register. “He was doing the right thing, and somebody hit him that had been drinking.” Gamal had recently completed an intensive rehabilitative program.
According to an Orange County Sheriff”s Department spokesperson, detectives are awaiting the blood results of the driver, who has not been named, before referring the case to prosecutors for possible criminal charges.
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