Just days after the death of his 4-year-old nephew, Gilroyan
Felix Diaz is struggling with the loss, yet counting his blessings
that the crash that tragically took his nephew’s life didn’t claim
more family members.
Just days after the death of his 4-year-old nephew, Gilroyan Felix Diaz is struggling with the loss, yet counting his blessings that the crash that tragically took his nephew’s life didn’t claim more family members.
Sunday evening, another Gilroy resident, allegedly driving drunk slammed into Diaz’s brother-in-law’s truck after it broke down on the west side of southbound U.S. 101 just south of Metcalf Road, killing the family’s only son, Jose Cortez-Diaz.
Seconds after Jose’s mother Margarita and 12-year-old sister got out of the smoking 2001 Chevrolet S-10, another truck – a 1989 Ford F-250 driven by James Francis Lee, 44, of Gilroy – crashed into the back of the family’s truck, causing a toolbox in the S-10’s bed to fly through the rear window and strike the boy, said California Highway Patrol Officer Jaime Rios. The rest of the family escaped the crash with only seconds to spare, Diaz said.
Jose’s father, Jesus Cortez, had been unbuckling the boy’s seat belt when they were hit.
“I couldn’t imagine if they stayed just a few more seconds in the car,” Diaz said Thursday morning outside the Bank of America off 10th Street, where he was setting up a fund in his nephew’s name. “It could have been the whole family.”
After the crash, paramedics used the Jaws of Life to extricate Jose, who sustained major wounds to the head but was still breathing at the scene, from the wreck and life-flighted him to Valley Medical Center. But the little boy’s injuries were too severe and he was pronounced dead less than two hours after the crash, Rios said. His father suffered a broken jaw and injuries to his arms, said Diaz, Margarita Diaz’s brother and uncle to Jose.
Jose was supposed to start school this fall and loved bikes, he said.
“He was a very happy kid,” said Diaz, who has two children who are his nephew’s age, as he opened a family photo album on the hood of his truck. Portraits and candid photos of the family filled the pages. “They were very close. He had a lot of smarts. We’re going to miss him a lot.”
Diaz and his sister were born in Oaxaca, Mexico, and she speaks little English, he said. After his release from the hospital Thursday, Jose’s father is coping with his son’s death, but “he’s really bad,” Diaz said of his brother-in-law. The boy’s mother is trying to stay strong in the wake of their loss, said Diaz, who is taking care of his nephew’s funeral arrangements.
“I’m trying to do all this stuff so that they don’t have to worry about it,” Diaz said.
Jose’s father, a landscaper, was returning from checking out a prospective job in San Jose with his family Sunday when his son was killed. A hard worker, Jesus loved his children and the family was a close one, Diaz said.
“He talked all the time about his kids,” said Guillermo Lopez, Jesus Cortez’s brother, who arrived in town Thursday from Wisconsin.
The family regularly attended mass at St. Mary Catholic Parish.
The S-10 was “almost unrecognizable” after the crash and the F-250 rolled onto its roof, Rios said. Police arrested Lee, the driver of the F-250, at the scene and took him into custody after he was treated for minor cuts, Rios said. Lee, who was returning home to Gilroy from a heavy metal concert in Mountain View, was allegedly intoxicated and veered off the road, colliding with the family’s truck at about 65 or 70 mph, Rios said. His blood alcohol level was twice the legal limit of 0.08, police said.
The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office charged him with gross vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence of alcohol over the legal limit and causing injury. He was arraigned on the charges Wednesday and will next appear in court 9:30 a.m. July 19 in Department 23 of the Hall of Justice in San Jose for plea. His charges carry a maximum sentence of 10 years, according to DA spokeswoman Amy Cornell.
Comments left on the Dispatch comment board by friends and family of Lee characterized him as a loving father of two girls and a hard working man who made a mistake. They extended their deepest condolences to the family of the little boy. However, Diaz said his sister and her husband were not ready to speak to Lee’s family.
Services for Jose cortez-Diaz
Visiting hours will be held from 1 to 9 p.m. today at Habing Family Funeral Home. A funeral mass is scheduled for noon Saturday at Sacred Heart Church, 680 College St., in Hollister. Burial will follow at St. Mary Cemetery, 900 First St., Gilroy. A fund has been set up to help cover funeral costs. Donations can be made to Bank of America account 2004969920.
