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Jul 28, 2008 5:54 pm US/Central
Alleged Drunk Driver On Trial For FWPD Officer
FORT WORTH (CBS 11 / TXA 21) ―
Testimony began Monday in the trial of the man accused in the 2006 death of Fort Worth police officer Dwayne Freeto.
Samuel Hilburn, 23, is on trial for intoxication manslaughter.
Prosecutors say Hilburn was drunk on December 17, 2006 when he slammed into the back of Officer Freeto's Crown Victoria.
If the crash had happened after September of 2007, when tougher laws went into effect for drunk drivers who kill first responders, Hilburn would be facing a possible 90-year maximum sentence. As it stands he faces a sentence of two to 20 years in prison.
In opening statements prosecutors said they would draw the distinction between the Fort Worth police officer and the man on trial for killing him. Tarrant County Assistant District Attorney Mark Thielman said for Freeto it was, 'to protect and to serve', and for Hilburn it was, "to drink, and to destroy."
During testimony Monday prosecutors brought forth witnesses testifying to the pain and suffering of Officer Freeto - who was trapped inside his burning car.
Hilburn's head was bowed as the medical examiner detailed Officer Freeto's extensive burn injuries. Officer Freeto had stopped on the side of the road to help a woman with a flat tire.
Defense attorneys don't deny their client had been drinking, but claim Hilburn only had two or three drinks before the crash. They do however dispute Hilburn's intoxication.
"Did that intoxication cause what happened?" asked defense attorney Okey Akpom. "We're saying that many other things could have caused it, but it wasn't intoxication. That's all we're saying."
Investigators had originally reported Hilburn's blood/alcohol level at 2 ½ times the state's legal limit. That evidence has not been brought forth yet at trial.
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