Question of Intent Hangs Over Pena Trial

After the first week of an expected four week trial, the question of whether defendant Domonic Whilby was in his right mind when he slammed into William Pena’s M14 bus after a night of partying will be decisive.

Defense Attorney Laura Miranda is trying to make a case that her client, who had a blood alcohol level of .28 an hour after the fatal collision, was too far gone to have the ability to consent to his blood test – not to mention the wherewithal to realize what he was doing when he pulled a stolen 9-ton truck out into traffic and ran a red light at 14th and 7th, killing Bus Operator William Pena. Prosecutor Randolph Clarke, assisted by ADA Atalanta Mihas, has been painstakingly building a different picture of Whilby, who had been partying at a celebrity-studded restaurant and then at an exclusive club before he got ejected by bouncers and found himself without wheels.

In carefully presented witness testimony from security guards and doormen who interacted with the defendant, as well as videos showing him stealing the truck, Clarke is laying the foundation for what Mihas, in the prosecution’s opening statement, called Whilby’s “quick and logical decisions” that ultimately led to Pena’s death. “[Domonic Whilby] was hell-bent and determined,” she told the 16 jurors and alternates, “to go into that loading dock and take the truck, a truck that weighed nine tons. He was intoxicated but his conduct was purposeful, goal-oriented, and it reflected his decisions.” Ms. Mihas told the jury that no finding of intent was required to find Whilby guilty of the charges, just that he caused the crimes that were committed. “It wasn’t that he wanted to kill, but that he created a grave risk of death. When you drink alcohol, you lose your inhibitions. Alcohol is the reason why you make bad decisions. Not that you don’t want to make them. He had the ability and the awareness, the will and the wherewithal to correct all of them.”

William Pena’s wife, Nancy Rodriguez, has been in the front row of the courtroom for each day of the trial, often accompanied by family members as well as their daughter, Gabrielle. Local 100 members have also made their presence felt. We’re hoping for an increasing turnout as the trial proceeds.