Brother of driver accused of killing Caleb Ramirez apologizes during wrongful death lawsuit trial
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The brother of the man accused of killing an 8-year-old boy in Pharr apologizing to the victim's family during the first day of the trial in a wrongful death lawsuit.
The family of Caleb Ramirez filed the lawsuit after a Hidalgo County grand jury declined to indict the driver of a GMC Sierra that police said struck and killed him in April 2024.
The lawsuit identified the driver as Alex Castillo. His brother Orlando — the owner of the truck, and his parents and the Pharr Police Department were also named in the lawsuit.
Castillo was cited for being behind the wheel of the vehicle without a license on the day of the crash, but no other charges were filed, according to the lawsuit. Caleb’s parents are seeking $1 million in damages.
Jury selection and opening statements were made Tuesday morning.
Oscar Cruz, a crash analyst expert, took to the stand and said, after reviewing surveillance video of the crash and the police report, that he believed Castillo was not paying attention on the road.
Cruz said he believed Castillo drove in a “careless and reckless manner,” and that calculations showed the truck was moving at 10 miles per hour when it hit Caleb.
Orlando also took to the stand and apologized to Caleb’s family.
“May God bless you all, and may he give you peace in your heart,” Orlando said in Spanish. “If at any moment I have been disrespectful, I apologize with all my heart. I will tell you to here to your face and in front of everyone.”
The trial is expected to resume Wednesday morning.
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