Man convicted in Bexar County’s first remote criminal trial

Presiding judge hears testimony, returns verdict in bench trial; defendant faces up to 20 years in prison

SAN ANTONIO – The first remote criminal trial in Bexar County history ended Friday with a 36-year-old man being found guilty of driving while intoxicated.

This was the third DWI offense for the defendant, Carlos Enriquez.

The jury-less bench trial, to which Enriquez agreed to, was held in 290th District Court with Judge Jennifer Pena presiding.

“At a 0.16 at the time of testing, the defendant (was) to have been above a .08 at the time he was driving,” prosecutor Neal Cordero told the judge during his opening argument.

A person in Texas is considered legally drunk at .08.

Defense attorney James Meyrat insisted that Enriquez wasn’t the driver of a van that was found on the Interstate 10 access road near Culebra Road the night of Nov. 17, 2018.

”This is all about operating,” Meyrat said. “Was the defendant driving the car while intoxicated?”

SAPD Officer Christopher Lopez, who arrested Enriquez, testified that the defendant admitted he was the driver of the van and that he was stopped on the access road because he ran out of gas.

Pena found Enriquez guilty and ordered a pre-sentencing investigation.

She will sentence Enriquez when the investigation is completed. Enriquez faces a punishment range of from 2 to 20 years in prison.


About the Authors:

Paul Venema is a courthouse reporter for KSAT with more than 25 years experience in the role.

Sal Salazar is a photojournalist at KSAT 12. Before coming to KSAT in 1998, he worked at the Fox affiliate in San Antonio. Sal started off his career back in 1995 for the ABC Affiliate in Lubbock and has covered many high-profile news events since. In his free time, he enjoys spending time at home, gaming and loves traveling with his wife.