A Vancouver man who crashed his vehicle in an attempt to kill his girlfriend and 2-year-old son, who were passengers, was sentenced Friday to 15 years in prison.
Robert Lewis Souza, 24, previously pleaded guilty in Clark County Superior Court to two counts of attempted second-degree murder, both domestic violence related. He initially faced attempted first-degree murder, but that charge was amended as part of a plea deal.
The rollover crash was reported at about 11:40 p.m. March 31, 2015, on East Mill Plain Boulevard in front of Hudson’s Bay High School. Vancouver police said Souza crashed the vehicle after his girlfriend, Wendy Garibay, then 24, said she was breaking up with him.
Souza told police that he and his son picked up Garibay from a bar in central Vancouver. The couple argued about the status of their relationship, which ended with Garibay telling him it was over. Souza said he “snapped” and decided to kill all of them by “ramming a gas station,” according to a probable cause affidavit filed in Superior Court.
He said he began to accelerate, reaching 120 mph, and threw Garibay’s cellphone out the driver’s-side window when she threatened to call 911. Souza said he kept thinking that if he couldn’t have Garibay and his son in his life, then he could have them in death, the affidavit said.
Souza started to realize that what he was doing was wrong, he said, but then he lost control of the vehicle. It hit the center divider and flipped, court records said. There were no skid marks at the scene, police said.
Garibay sustained minor injuries. The couple’s son was not injured.
Souza told the court in February that he thinks his bipolar disorder, which was undiagnosed at the time, prompted his decision.
During sentencing, Garibay described Souza as a kindhearted man and good father. She said his mental state caused the situation to spin out of control.
“He was lost, and he needs help,” she said, adding that she fears prison will change him for the worse.
She pleaded with Judge Suzan Clark to not see Souza as a criminal, but a man with a mental illness. “He’s not a monster,” Garibay said.
Garibay also asked that no-contact orders between her and Souza and their son be lifted. “He deserves to know his son,” she said, tearfully.
Deputy Prosecutor Luka Vitasovic recommended Souza serve the low end of the sentencing range — 184.5 months in prison, 92.25 months on each count to run consecutively. He also said Souza should undergo domestic violence and mental health treatment.
“The state feels this is a very, very sad case,” Vitasovic said. However, it could have been worse, he said. There could have been two funerals, in addition to Souza going to prison.
Souza’s defense attorney, Chris Ramsay, described his client as a good person, aside from what happened, thoughtful and spiritual. He said whether Souza’s actions were premeditated was debatable but that the risk of going to trial was too high.
He urged Clark to allow Souza to exchange letters with his son while in prison.
“Being here has definitely given me a different perspective. Not everyone is inherently bad, but not everyone is inherently good either,” Souza told Clark.
“I love my family. They’re my driving light,” he added. “I feel so sorry for what happened. I never meant for this to happen. I never meant to hurt them. I never meant to hurt anyone.”
Clark told Souza it’s incomprehensible that he could say he loves Garibay and his son but made a serious effort to kill them, and put others at risk. His bipolar disorder is not an excuse, she said, but maybe an explanation.
“This goes beyond your family,” she said. “It’s pretty terrifying to think what would have happened if you had struck someone else.”
Still, Clark agreed to follow the recommendation and granted Souza written contact with Garibay and his son. Souza was given credit for 373 days in custody.
