ST JOHN PARISH – The undocumented immigrant blamed for a 2016 crash on I-10 in LaPlace that killed three people, including an on-duty firefighter, has been sentenced.
Amaya was sentenced to 15 years in prison on April 9. A jury found Denis Amaya Rodrigues guilty of three counts negligent homicide on Jan. 11, 2018. Five years for each count is the maximum sentence.
Amaya also faces charges for the negligent injuring of more than 30 people as well as driving without a license. However, he has not been tried for those yet.
Amaya, an undocumented Honduran national, has been cited a half-dozen times for driving without a license and was arrested in 2011 on domestic abuse battery charges that were later dropped. He will likely face a deportation trial as well.
The crash occurred on the morning of Aug. 28, 2016.
Amaya was driving a “party bus” carrying several people looking for flood recovery work to Baton Rouge when he crashed into the scene of another accident and collided with another vehicle.
Three people were killed. St. John Fire District Chief Spencer Chauvin, Vontarous Kelly and Jermain Starr all died as a results of the crash. More than 30 others were injured in the crash.
Amaya’s attorney claimed the bus was defective and had faulty brakes, but state police presented evidence to the contrary during the court case.
The company that rented the bus to Amaya is also facing litigation.