Overview
- A high‑speed collision on February 12, 2023, in Oxnard killed Samuel Castro and Annette Gomez when Castro’s car was broadsided during a U‑turn.
- Prosecutors say surveillance video and an event data recorder from the defendant’s vehicle proved he was traveling 108.73 mph one second before the crash.
- Sharbel Touma pleaded guilty on March 16, 2026, to two felony counts of vehicular manslaughter and faced sentencing this month.
- On June 15–16, 2026, the Ventura County judge sentenced Touma to three years and four months in state prison, remanded him to custody, and barred him from driving during parole.
- Prosecutors had urged a five‑year, four‑month term citing extreme speed and preventability and publicly objected to the shorter sentence, leaving open the possibility of further legal action or review.