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LAS CRUCES – A man pleaded guilty to killing another man in his car while drunk was sentenced to eight years in prison by a judge on Thursday.
In December 2020, Daniel Medina, 44, pleaded guilty to killing Austin Wagner while traveling in the wrong direction on Interstate 25. Police said Wagner, a military veteran in his early 20s, was riding a motorcycle when the accident occurred on April 27, 2019.
According to court records, Medina had been drinking in a Las Cruces brewery. When Medina got on I-25 to go north, he took the south lane instead. Around the same time, Wagner was out on his motorcycle.
Police said Medina hit another driver and seriously injured him. Then Wagner rammed his motorcycle into the collided vehicles and was thrown off his motorcycle. He died on the scene.
The hearing for the announcement of the verdict on Thursday – part of the agreement on the plea – contained emotional testimonies and statements about the impact of Wagner’s family and Medina.
Medina told Wagner’s family that he was sorry. He said he was responsible for Wagner’s death and was ready to face the consequences of his actions.
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“This is the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do in my life,” said Medina. “My mother and father raised me to be a much better man than I was on April 27th.”
Wagner’s stepfather Tom Grohs gave a detailed account of his stepson’s life. He told several stories about Wagner, including a time when Wagner and Grohs conspired to surprise Wagner’s mother when Wagner came home from a mission.
Grohs said he was incredibly proud of his stepson who served his country.
Justin Garcia is a public safety reporter for Las Cruces Sun-News. He can be reached at JEGarcia@lcsun-news.com or Twitter @ Just516garc
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