NEW CANEY, Texas – Isaac David Lee Ackley pleaded guilty Tuesday to intoxicated manslaughter and causing an accident involving death.
Ackley was accused of killing 22-year-old Daniel Gomez during a drunken-driving incident.
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Officials said Ackley drank several beers and drove at a high rate of speed down FM 1485 in New Caney on Oct. 11, 2016, before slamming into the back of an 18-wheeler, killing his passenger, Gomez.
Deputies said witnesses told them Ackley fled the scene with the help of a family member after the crash.
The Texas Highway Patrol and Precinct 4 Constables investigated the crash and found Ackley injured at his home. Officials said his blood-alcohol concentration was .161 percent.
Officials said Ackley was on felony probation at the time for incidents in 2011 in which he kicked and spat on two Montgomery County deputies.
Prosecutors said Ackley had a criminal background.
During a November court appearance, assistant district attorney Lisa Stewart presented evidence of more than 30 violations of probation, including numerous positive drug tests and admission to using drugs and alcohol.
Stewart said it was evident that Ackley had been given multiple chances and was in and out of jail over a four-year period. Ackley was sentenced in November to eight years in prison for each probation violation.
Ackley was sentenced to 15 years in prison for each conviction in the October crash and will serve them concurrently.
“DPS and Precinct 4 worked tirelessly along with DA investigator Suzanne Hollifield to build the evidence against the defendant," Prosecutor Lisa Stewart said. " The hard work of law enforcement led to this substantial prison sentence. But there are no winners in these cases. A family lost their son, brother and husband and children lost their father. This plea can’t undo that, but my hope is that in future the punishment range will be increased by the Legislature in cases involving intoxicated defendants who flee the scene of a crash.”