An elderly woman who fled the scene after hitting a 13-year-old boy in Acton, Massachusetts, leaving him in a coma, was sentenced to two years probation.
The crash happened in November of 2022. César Soto Jr., who was 13 at the time, was hospitalized for over a month and a half.
The Middlesex County District Attorney's Office said Monday that 86-year-old Joan Hurley of Maynard had pleaded guilty in Concord District Court. A judge sentenced her to two years probation with conditions that she not drive or contact the victim.
Get New England news, weather forecasts and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NECN newsletters.
While police said about two weeks after the crash that they had identified the driver, charges were not immediately filed. Soto's mother, Crisoly Tejeda, told NBC10 Boston at the time she was aggravated that police had given her no information about what happened.
"When I ask the police, they don’t have any report for that day," she said after the crash. "I just need to know what's going on."
In December of that year, police said they were "seeking charges" against an 85-year-old woman, whose name they did not release.
At that point, Tejeda questioned why it was taking so long to bring charges, and why the driver didn't turn herself in.
"It's been a nightmare," Tejeda said. "I want justice."
It wasn't until March that Hurley would appear in Concord District Court to face charges of leaving the scene of a crash and reckless driving. She pleaded not guilty at the time. Prosecutors showed receipts from shots of alcohol Hurley bought before the crash.
In court Wednesday, Hurley's lawyer argued she was disoriented and didn't know what happened that night. But Soto isn't buying it, he explained in an interview with Telemundo Nueva Inglaterra.
"When she hit me, she didn't stop," Soto, now 14, said in Spanish. "At least she could stop to call the ambulance or something, you know? But she didn't do anything."
"He is still not 100% recovered," Tejeda added. "He is taking physical therapy, occupational therapy and vision therapy."
The family is planning a civil case against Hurley.
Soto says he is undeterred in his dream of becoming a professional basketball player.
