August 18, 2007
Trial starts in hit-run death of ASU Foundation official
Jill Redhage, Tribune
The woman who struck and killed an Arizona State University Foundation official earlier this year goes to trial Monday in Maricopa County Superior Court.

Yesenia Angulo-Gastelum, 26, of Phoenix, faces hit-and-run charges in the death of 37-year-old Micheal Boulden, the ASU Foundation’s former chief of staff. On Feb. 18, Boulden had been riding his bicycle east on Pinnacle Peak Road in Phoenix at about 6 a.m. as Angulo-Gastelum drove east on her way to work. The sky had been dark. Scene analyses show that at the point of collision, the shoulder of the road disappears.

Though attorneys haven’t resolved the question of fault in the collision, it is illegal under Arizona law to leave the scene of a fatal collision. Police said that after the collision, Angulo-Gastelum drove away and Boulden was later pronounced dead at the scene.

Anonymous tips led police to Angulo-Gastelum’s white 1999 Chevrolet Malibu on March 2. Red paint from Boulden’s Raleigh bicycle was still scraped across the front of the car, though the woman and her boyfriend had already repaired the windshield and attempted to fix the body of the car, Phoenix police Sgt. Joel Tranter said.

Initial scene analyses left open the question of fault in the crash. Angulo-Gastelum’s attorney, Ed Conter, said Boulden had been wearing dark clothing, no helmet and had been riding several feet into the lane. A portable music player had been found at the scene.

But so were several clip-on bike lights. And the fact that Angulo-Gastelum left the scene is not contested. Tranter said Angulo-Gastelum has confessed to hitting Boulden.

Because Angulo-Gastelum is an illegal immigrant, her fate is particularly uncertain. If convicted, she may face deportation. Conter said she came to the United States legally on a work visa, but it has since expired. However, her two young children are U.S. citizens. Angulo-Gastelum is being held nonbondable under Proposition 100, which renders some illegal aliens ineligible for bail.

Conversations at a status conference on July 24 revealed that the prosecutor, Eric Rothblum, had been considering offering Angulo-Gastelum a plea agreement. But a conference on Aug. 7 didn’t yield a settlement. Rothblum could not be reached last week for comment on the case.

Boulden joined the ASU Foundation in 2005, where he managed special projects, human resources and board relations. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University in 1988 and his master’s degree in marketing in 1995. He’d been well-known for his work as a civil rights activist.

Angulo-Gastelum’s trial proceeds today before Judge Raymond Lee at 10:30 a.m.

http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/95400