Man who killed 3 in crash was intoxicated

MIAMI (WSVN) -- Authorities have confirmed that the man accused of killing three children in a car crash had a blood alcohol level almost three times beyond the legal limit.

According to authorities, Gabriel Delrisco could be charged as early as Friday in the deaths of 4-year-old Amber Serrano, 7-year-old Esmeralda Serrano and their 10-year-old brother Hector Serrano early Sunday.

Officials said, based on preliminary tests, Delrisco was very drunk. "The message is constant. The message is  one that is prevalent day-in and day-out. It's strong. It's firm. It's unequivocal. Do not drink and drive," said Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez-Rundle.

Sources said Delrisco's blood alcohol was almost three times above the legal limit. "If we can do our part on giving some sense of information, is knowledge is power. It's somewhat closure for them to understand," said Fernandez-Rundle.

"It's a horrible thing. I have children. I see these accidents. The loss is huge, and I have lost family from natural causes. It's a terrible and inexplicable future that this couple is going to have, so our job becomes even more important," said an emotional Fernandez-Rundle.

The South Florida community has been responding in support of the family. Fire departments, hospitals, celebrities and local radio stations have all worked together to raise money for the Serrano parents to bury their children and survive while they are absent from work.

Delrisco had a DUI prior to this and over 20 traffic tickets. "As we look more and more into this case, we want to know why did the civil court miss this," said Fernandez-Rundle. "We find that the criminal judge who had the first DUI, he did exactly what the law required, so should he be driving? Of course not. Look what he did." 

The state attorney ultimately hopes a positive lesson can come from this tragedy. "There are no answers, and all we can hope to do is our job, which is to continue to get this message out, like you're doing on Channel 7, which is such an important message. Don't put the key in the ignition. If you think you had too much to drink or you think you may be going to fast or your phone rings, pull over, stop. It is not worth the serious consequences. The other thing is that, you're looking at state prison."

Delrisco now faces three counts of DUI manslaughter, which could result in three consecutive 15-year sentences in jail.

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