MIAMI — The jury reached a verdict Tuesday in the trial for a man accused of crashing into a mother and her two daughters in North Bay Village, killing all three of them.
Jurors found 27-year-old Julius Bernstein guilty of two counts each of vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a crash causing death.
5 p.m. report:
A lawyer representing the girls’ father said the verdict is a step toward the right direction.
“It’s never going to be the same, Mr. Sandi doesn’t have his family anymore,” said attorney Omar Saleh. “Today relived the worst day of Mr. Saldi’s life, as well as the family’s life.”
Following a trial that lasted several days, both sides gave their closing arguments on Tuesday in a Miami courtroom.
The trial is all over a fiery crash that occurred in June of 2022 at the intersection of the John F. Kennedy Causeway and Harbor Island Drive.
Witness dashcam video captured a Dodge Charger crashing into the victim’s Infiniti as it was trying to turn left, causing it to burst into flames.
The man accused of driving the Charger, Bernstein, is being tried for vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of the crash that led to the deaths of Cynthia Orsa Telliz and her daughters, 15-year-old Sophia Saidi and 12-year-old Maria Saidi.
Prosecutors say Bernstein was going nearly 100 miles per hour in a 30 mph zone when he hit them and took off before he was later arrested in North Carolina.
In closing arguments, prosecutors cited DNA evidence that put Bernstein in the vehicle and argued he should be punished for recklessly driving and taking three lives.
The defense had worked to undermine that evidence during the trial, calling it misleading and also saying the victim’s alcohol level was twice the legal limit the night of the crash.
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