Staff Report
The Associated Press
CARLSBAD, N.M. (AP) - A jury has returned a guilty verdict in a Carlsbad hit & run case stemming from the 2010 Halloween night death of a Carlsbad mother.
The jury found Gilbert Melendrez Jr. guilty of vehicular homicide and five other charges Monday after deliberating an hour.
The Carlsbad Current-Argus reports Melendrez was remanded to the Eddy County Detention Center, where he will remain until the court-ordered pre-sentence report is completed and submitted to the court.
Prosecutor Ray Romero says he expects Melendrez will be sentenced within 30 days.
In addition to vehicular homicide, the jury returned a guilty verdict of knowingly leaving the scene of an accident resulting in death.
Carlsbad police say 24-year-old Leora "Jean" Dyess was killed as she crossed the street with a group of young trick-or-treaters that included her own two children.
