EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — The attorney of the man who was jailed after he was wrongfully charged for the death of 17-year-old Miguel Angel Romero in 2024 told KTSM that people keep “threatening and harassing” his client to this day.
Charges against 55-year-old Oscar Solis for intoxicated manslaughter and collision involving death were dropped in April. However, the El Paso County Attorney’s Office on Thursday, Sept. 4, announced the reason behind the charge dismissal.
Romero was struck and killed in February 2024 when he was crossing Darrington Boulevard in Horizon City.
Solis was arrested after a bystander followed a red pickup and identified it as the suspected vehicle. Officers said Solis had an open container of alcohol inside the truck and had a history of DWI convictions.
However, District Attorney James Montoya said in the press conference that testing showed Solis had no alcohol in his system and DNA swabs from his truck came back negative.
“When we took office at the beginning of this year, this case was scheduled for trial, and when we reviewed it closely, we did not feel that we could proceed in good faith and good conscious after reviewing this and the testing that was done afterwards,” Montoya said.
In addition, prosecutors also pointed out key differences between Solis’ vehicle and the maroon pickup seen on surveillance video near the crash.
Even though Solis is now free after being imprisoned for a crime he did not commit, his attorney expressed his frustration with this case.
“He (Solis) lost his home, lost his truck, got divorced, had to pay a lawyer, lost his job, had to pay a bail bond company, and to this day, people are still blaming him and harassing him. So, you know, it was, it was initially a big relief, but then you know, the reality of what happened set in. Now, several months later, it’s been called into question. People are threatening him and harassing him with that kind of stuff,” Dereck Wyatt, Solis’ attorney, said.
Wyatt said that initially, it looked like Solis was responsible for the crash because two witnesses allegedly saw his truck hit Romero, and one of them told police she followed Solis and got a video of him at a gas station.
Police got the video, got Solis’ license plates, and went to his house. His wife told police he was gone drinking with some friends and buying cigarettes. Then Solis happened to pull up when officers were still there, Wyatt said.
“So then, just then, my client happened to pull up, coming back from the gas station, and sure enough, he had a Clamato. One of those 24-ounce Bud Light Clamato, and it was cold to the touch. And the police officer said they smelled alcohol. And my guy’s got two priors. So, to them, that case was open and shut right there,” Wyatt said.
Wyatt said it was a very easy case until he started looking at all the evidence. He said the trucks had different front ends, stickers, door handles, etc., but he still had the two witness statements, and he decided to get a private investigator.
He said his investigators talked to the witness who got the video of Solis in the gas station, and learned that she didn’t follow him immediately from the police to the gas station.
“But what the police didn’t realize at the time was that this witness did not follow him from the collision to the gas station. There was a period where she was sitting there, you know, trying to help the young man out. And then she went off in the general direction of the truck, and then she saw a similar vehicle,” Wyatt said.
Wyatt said the lab results then came in, and there was no DNA or blood in Solis’ truck, and he had a zero breath alcohol level.
Solis may now pursue legal action for being wrongfully charged, according to Wyatt.
“Actually, I’m working on that right now. He was in custody for 11 months. And this is a lot of stress on my client, and he’s lost a lot in life. In fact, his whole life is just turned upside down. He doesn’t have the same life that he did when this started. And the tragedy of it is, I’m trying to get on social media and the news, telling people, ‘You got the wrong guy.’ This is not me getting somebody off on a technical. Reality, this is just absolutely the wrong guy,” Wyatt said.
“I can see why he was wrongfully arrested, absolutely, and it only came to light because we just spent a lot of time digging through this and getting clarification and interviewing every witness involved, and then once we got clarification on the fact that that witness lost the vehicle, that’s when he got off, so he was wrongfully arrested. And yeah, I can see why, all right, and I guess justice was served. He did eventually get off. However, the collateral damage to my client is immense. His life’s never going to be the same again, perfect,” Wyatt added.
Romero’s family also spoke out about the new finding, saying they will not rest until justice is served.
KTSM reached out to the Horizon City Police Department for comment.
Despite the current status of the case, our team remains open to following up on any further leads they may encounter in the way of a tip or pending laboratory results. The complexity of this case prevents us from making further comments.
The DA’s office said the case is still active and investigators are searching for the driver of the maroon truck, responsible for the fatal pedestrian crash.
If you recognize the dark red-maroon crew cab pickup truck or have any information on the case, the public is asked to contact the Horizon Police Department at (915) 852-1047.
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