The widow of a Houston police officer had more than a year to think about what she might say to the man who caused her husband's death in a drunken-driving wreck. After Johoan Rodriguez was sentenced Friday to 55 years in prison for Kevin Will's death, Alisha Will walked through a crowded courtroom to the witness stand to read the letter she wrote. Rodriguez, an illegal immigrant who had been deported twice, went through a police barricade and drove his 2002 Volkswagen Beetle about 90 mph for a mile on the cleared highway before hitting Will. Rodriguez listened to her words without making a sound, but minutes earlier, he had cried out and then collapsed in his chair in sobs at hearing the jury's decision. Two of the jurors had tears in their eyes as they talked about the trial, which focused on drinking and driving. "Fifty-five years is essentially a life sentence in terms of how parole is computed," Assistant Harris County District Attorney Catherine Evans said. [...] it sends a message about how seriously the community protects its police officers and will stand behind them when the worst happens.
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