HOUSTON — A drunk driver who critically injured a Sugar Land police officer in 2022 has been sentenced.
It happened on March 20, 2022, around 2 a.m. when then-25-year-old Officer Ruben Munoz was working a single-vehicle crash on Highway 59 near Highway 90. He was using his patrol car to block traffic when he was hit by 27-year-old Julian Requena.
Police said Munoz was trapped inside his patrol vehicle unconscious. Officers Daniel Barbarick and Demarcus Mitchell with the Sugar Land Police Department were able to pry the back door of Munoz's car open and move him to the HOV lane with the help of two good Samaritans.
The officers administered CPR on Munoz until paramedics arrived. He underwent many surgeries and was later able to return to duty.
Requena was found guilty on two charges of intoxication assault and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Munoz is a veteran police officer but at the time of the crash, he had only been with SLPD for less than a year.
