Grieving Angel Families Relieved That Killer/Illegal Alien Remains in Prison for Another 2 Years

Guest Opinion by Terri LaPoint

Two grieving Angel Families got the news this week that their loved ones’ killer will remain behind bars for another two years. Sergio Rodriguez is responsible for the violent death of 18-year-old Hailey King and the maiming of 20-year-old Osmin David Gutierrez in 2016, and his eventual death five years later. Yet, Sergio became eligible for parole after serving only two years of his seventeen-year sentence.

The families re-live the trauma every two years as they testify to the parole board, hoping and praying that Rodriguez will remain in prison a little longer. It never gets easier, according to Hailey’s mom, Kathy Hall. 

Parole for Rodriguez Is denied for another two years. Because of the way the parole board works in Arkansas, this is the best possible outcome, as lame as this may sound. The other options were either parole denied for one year or parole granted. With the fact that he is an illegal, any parole would not have looked anything like it would for an American citizen on parole, i.e. no effective monitoring, no check-ins, and no accountability.

On August 18, I joined Kathy and her oldest daughter at the Arkansas Parole Board as they and David’s family stated their case. I know Kathy well – I published her family’s story in 2024 in the book Voices That Will Not Be Silenced. I knew David’s story from my research, but had not met his family until two weeks ago.

David’s mom, big sister, big brother, a niece, and a nephew were all there, along with a precious little brown-eyed girl – 6-year-old Hailey. David’s daughter, named for his friend who lost her life the day he lost his legs, was there – a little girl who is growing up without her daddy. 

I showed her the picture of David in the book. She has that picture at her house, she said, and she told me how much she loves him and misses him. Her aunt told me they are keeping David’s memory alive, and they have a lot of his things put up for her for when she is older. 

I fought back tears, grateful for the time I had spent transcribing his words for the book from an interview that David had done with Kathy Hall, the late Senator Linda Collins-Smith and show host Paul Harrell. Here is that interview:

In the interview David spoke of how proud he was of his mom – a Hispanic woman from Mexico who came to America the right way. She came legally, and worked very hard as a single mom to make a good life for her family. His words echoed in my heart as I met his beautiful mother. David contrasted his mother’s actions with those of Sergio Rodriguez, who came here illegally. The issue is absolutely not about racism, but about right and wrong.

Hailey’s death and the loss of David’s legs, and eventually his life, were not the result of a mere vehicle accident. It was a violent criminal act. With his big red pickup truck, Sergio slammed into the back of the scooter David and Hailey were on at over 70 mph in a 35 mph zone. Had he stopped and rendered aid, the outcome of that day likely would have been very different. Instead, he failed to slow down even a little. 

Video evidence shows sparks flying as he slung Hailey off the hood of his truck. He kept going for half a mile, dragging David and the scooter underneath his truck, before turning into some apartments and parking the truck. He ignored David’s screams for help as he lay mangled on the pavement. Instead of stopping to help him or call 911, he fled into the night, disappearing for two days. 

Kathy Hall remembered the “soulless eyes” of Rodriguez from the sentencing hearing in 2018. She said he showed no remorse for his crimes which took her daughter’s life, leaving her granddaughter without her mother.

In the 2018 hearing, David talked about the repercussions of Sergio’s actions. He described his nightmares and his fears. “I can’t even take a stroll on the sidewalk by myself any more without being paranoid that cars will come and hit me from behind.… the fear never leaves. For the rest of my life, I will drag around these insecurities just like he dragged me around the block. The judge might be able to give him a sentence, but he has sentenced me to a life without legs. He might be going to prison, but I will be incarcerated in my own body for life, which is a result of him deciding not to stop.” 

The actions of Rodriguez were a crime, David explained, “forever punishing two youth for a crime they did not commit.”

David continued to pay a steep price for the crimes of another man until his untimely death at the age of 25, a death that was the direct result of his injuries. He can no longer testify to the parole board about why Rodriguez needs to remain in prison and serve more of his sentence

At the recent parole hearing, his family shared poignant stories of what David meant to them. His little girl courageously spoke to the parole board about the loss of her father. 

Emotions ran deep during the hearing as each of David’s and Hailey’s family members pleaded for their killer to serve more of his sentence and not be released into the public to harm more innocent victims. Each traveled to Little Rock at their own expense, with no way of knowing what the outcome would be, hoping and praying for a measure of justice.

All across America, there are thousands of Angel Families living the same nightmare. They pray the rest of us never experience what they are going through.

These are the voices we must hear – those of the Angel Families and the victims of crimes committed by illegal aliens. This is the part of the story we don’t hear often enough. While the media clamors for the public to denounce ICE, and when politicians fight to defund ICE, we must remember why ICE exists. It is to protect American citizens from becoming victims of crimes that are 100% preventable. 

Thanks to President Trump and his policies, our borders are more secure than they have been in decades. We must continue to enforce our border laws and not allow ourselves to be deterred by the rhetoric that says porous borders and “undocumented immigrants” signify compassion. This kind of compassion, in reality, shows contempt for the American people. True compassion requires justice and enforcement of our immigration and border laws.

As the midterms approach, and for elections in the future, we must remember why border security matters and vote accordingly.

Terri LaPoint is the President of the Republican Women of Trussville and the author of “Voices That Will Not Be Silenced”, an exposé of the dark underbelly of agencies that are supposed to protect children. An award-winning investigative journalist who has covered hundreds of cases of medical kidnapping, she is passionate about speaking out in support of unjustly separated families. She lives in Odenville, and is on Facebook.

Recently, LaPoint was a candidate for Congress in Alabama’s Third District.

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