SANTA CRUZ — A 20-year-old Santa Cruz man was sentenced to nearly seven years in state prison for driving while high on marijuana and killing a Santa Cruz County analyst.
The courtroom of Santa Cruz County Superior Court Judge John Salazar was filled Wednesday with nearly two dozen people red-eyed and muted, both in person and via Zoom. Per a plea deal with the Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office, Mark Mendoza Zambrano is facing a six-year and eight-month incarceration for his role in the June 15, 2020 death of 43-year-old Allison Endert.
Sister Cathy Endert, speaking by video call, said she hoped to see Mendoza serve “every minute of his short sentence.” Mendoza, who has been jailed since June 2020, will receive credit for time already served and could see his prison time reduced by “good behavior” credits.
“Anyone who loved her is going to suffer the loss of Allison Endert. We all loved her so much,” Cathy Endert said. “I don’t want Allison’s life to be forgotten or minimized because she is not here today.”
On the day of Endert’s death, Mendoza was driving westbound on Murray Street when he failed to navigate a turn in the road on his way to the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk. Without braking, Mendoza reportedly drove straight over the curb near Mott Avenue and struck both Endert and her then 15-year-old daughter, who were returning on foot from nearby Seabright State Beach.
Endert worked as a staff member for Santa Cruz County Supervisor Ryan Coonerty and had done the same for his father before him, former Supervisor Neal Coonerty. The younger Coonerty joined Endert’s family in the courtroom during the sentencing.
Mendoza spoke on his own behalf, occasionally pausing to gather himself while reading a pre-written statement to the court. He said was sincerely sorry for the pain he had caused since Endert’s death and had “learned many lessons from this unfortunate tragedy.”
“I, as well, have to live with the unfortunate consequences from my mistake for the rest of my life,” read Mendoza in a voice thick with emotion. “I want you to know that I am not anywhere near what people might claim me to be; that I, as a man, do take responsibility for the actions and for all the pain that I have brought you.”
Avoiding a full trial, Mendoza pleaded no contest to gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and DUI causing injury. He was convicted Dec. 16 on the felony charges.
Santa Cruz County Assistant District Attorney Alex Byers, serving as prosecutor for the case, said Mendoza had taken responsibility for his crimes by pleading to the charges.
“Is it enough time? No. It’s never going to be equal,” Byers said, referring to the loss of Endert’s life. “To balance it out, we’ll see what Mr. Mendoza does when he gets released.”
Salazar said that the court had received numerous letters ahead of the sentencing, with writers describing how much Endert had contributed to her community. While there was pain for both Mendoza’s and Endert’s families, the loss of Endert was permanent, he said. Salazar urged Mendoza to hold tightly to the lessons he had learned from this experience, particularly after serving his prison term, and to go on to help others.
“There’s no way to go back and rewind any of this but I hope the message goes out to our community and to others that every time we get the chance to talk about that, we see someone who has something to drink or something to smoke or something to use and somebody that drives a little too fast, who gets a little reckless … all those things,” Salazar said. “The safety laws are important and don’t do those things, because this is the type of tragedy that happens, something you can’t take back.”
Source: www.mercurynews.com