Eagle Point woman found guilty of felony hit and run

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A jury has found an Eagle Point woman guilty of a felony hit-and-run charge for failing to stop last year after accidentally striking and killing 15-year-old Manuel Antonio-Gonzalez, who was lying in a Medford street in what may have been a suicide, according to testimony by the victim's brother.
Mary Ann Shostrom, 53, likely faces between 30 and 90 days in jail, probation and a fine of up to $125,000 for failure to perform the duties of a driver to an injured person. Her sentencing is scheduled for 8:30 a.m. Wednesday.
“I'm happy the family has closure,” said prosecutor Ginger Greer, after the court adjourned.
Jurors voted 11-to-1 to find Shostrom guilty of the charge at about 2 p.m. today after deliberating for about two hours.
It's unclear what evidence persuaded the jury or why the one jurist disagreed with the majority.
Manuel's 15-year-old brother, Juan, who witnessed his brother's death and testified at the trial, and the boys' mother were not present at the reading of the verdict.
The sentencing was delayed until Dec. 2 to give them a chance to speak, Greer said.
Shostrom's defense attorney, Kelly Ravassipour, could not immediately be reached today.
Closing arguments concluded just before noon after jurors heard testimony from Shostrom and Juan, who was 14 at the time of the accident, April 13, 2008.
Juan testified earlier today that his brother got emotional after drinking five shots of tequila and having an argument with their mother. Juan said that Manuel told him no one would miss him if he died and then laid down on North Riverside Avenue to end his life.
“I was going to go get him and pick him up,” Juan testified. “That's when a car came by.”
Juan's account of what happened changed a few times, but the prosecution and the defense agreed that his description of the car remained consistent: a white sedan with stock wheel rims. However, Juan testified that he told police an overweight man was driving the vehicle, possibly accompanied by one or two passengers.
Shostrom testified she remembered driving over “a bump” at about 2 a.m. that night. However, construction on the road at the time caused her not to think much of it, she said. Riverside had multiple jump plates that prompted voters to slow down, similar to speed bumps.
— Paris Achen

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