SANTA FE, N.M. — The man sentenced to 27 years for hitting and killing a child at the River of Lights may get out sooner due to a recent New Mexico Supreme Court ruling.

Sergio Almanza was drunk when he ran a red light and crashed his ATV into Pronoy Bhattacharya, killing him and injuring his father in December 2021. After the crash, he fled to Mexico. Then, U.S. marshals worked with officials to extradite him arrest him.

Last August, a jury found Almanza guilty of DWI vehicular homicide, tampering with evidence and driving an off-highway vehicle on a roadway. A judge earlier this month sentenced him to 27 years in prison.

Almanza has already served two of those 27 years but he could serve less time. A recent state Supreme Court ruling over DWI laws means Almanza is eligible for good time served. That knocks about five years off of his sentence.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez blames the state Legislature for this. He issued this statement:

“Anyone who witnessed that crime and the carnage it caused would know that this was a crime of violence. But now, because of the Legislature’s failure to properly categorize the offense, Almanza will have five years cut from his final sentence. This is unacceptable and I urge the Legislature to honor Pronoy’s memory and fix this law at the next legislative session.”