Drunk valet driver fatal crash; Milwaukee man pleads guilty
Marco Gomez
MILWAUKEE - A Milwaukee valet driver accused of taking a hotel guest's car, driving drunk and causing a fatal crash in July has reached a plea deal in the case.
Court records show 23-year-old Marco Gomez pleaded guilty to second-degree reckless homicide and homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle. Charges of knowingly operating without a valid license and operating a motor vehicle without the owner's consent.
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11th and Wisconsin crash
Marquette University police were called to the scene around 11:45 p.m. on July 3. Officers found a white Toyota, which was rolled onto its side, and a blue Hyundai. Both sustained significant damage.
Gomez, since identified as the driver and sole occupant of the Toyota, was extricated from the wreck. The driver of the Hyundai was ejected and pronounced dead at the scene, a criminal complaint states.
Fatal crash at 11th and Wisconsin, Milwaukee
Surveillance video
Surveillance video showed the Toyota speeding west down Wisconsin Avenue before the crash.
The complaint states the Toyota drove in the bus lane and ran a red light at 10th Street before running the red light at 11th Street and slamming into the front driver's side of the Hyundai.
The video showed the Hyundai driver getting ejected, and the Toyota hitting a pole before rolling over. The medical examiner's office later identified the victim as 29-year-old Michael David Starks.
Milwaukee crash, 11th and Wisconsin
Valeted car missing
Police went to a downtown hotel near Phillips and Wells and spoke to a person who identified Gomez as a valet driver there. That person, according to the complaint, said one of the vehicles that the valet service was in charge of was missing that night during Gomez's shift.
A hotel guest identified the Toyota involved in the wreck as her rental car, per the complaint.
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Gomez in custody
Once in custody, Gomez told police he worked as a valet at the hotel and took the Toyota that night. He also said he was drinking before the crash and was intoxicated behind the wheel.
Gomez was originally charged with first-degree reckless homicide. He is scheduled to be sentenced in October.