Driver Gets 68 Years for Fort Worth Crash That Killed Five

Eduardo Gonzalez, 21, received a 68-year prison term after a Tarrant County jury convicted him on five counts of intoxication manslaughter. The jury also imposed a $50,000 fine. The crash happened on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth on August 19, 2024, and killed five people in another vehicle.

Prosecutors said Gonzalez was driving a Chevrolet Camaro at about 130 mph after consuming beer and THC when he struck the vehicle shortly after midnight. It caught fire, and all five people inside died at the scene.

The victims were Willie Gunn, 48; Amber Hopewell, 38; and Hopewell’s children—Elijah Carroll, 9, Chrystale Cobbin, 4, and Amiyah Fisher, 2. The children’s sentences will be served one after another, while the terms for the two adult victims will run at the same time, resulting in 68 years total.

Officers found beer bottles and an open can in Gonzalez’s car. They also described his eyes as red and watery, said his speech was slurred, and noted that he smelled of alcohol. Gonzalez was seriously injured in the crash but survived.

According to Phil Sorrells, Tarrant County’s district attorney, the verdict holds Gonzalez accountable, while acknowledging that no sentence could bring back the victims. Prosecutors credited their staff, investigators and Fort Worth police with pursuing the case.