Cristina Chambers — a 34‑year‑old Texas housewife who owns a Harley‑Davidson motorcycle and a Riyadh‑style luxury apartment — is on trial in Houston for the death of 33‑year‑old Joseph McMullin, a first‑date victim of a fatal crash that happened on 6 April 2023.
Chambers was driving a silver Porsche 911 Carrera when the car left the road on a sharp turn near a Voodoo Doughnut shop. Police say McMullin and his date were leaving when the vehicle slammed into a pole, killing him on impact. Pretty early that night, Chambers had been bar‑hopping with friends, and detectives found four‑times‑the‑legal‑limit blood alcohol in her system. In her purse there were small baggies of cocaine, according to the Houston Chronicle.
The defense’s story is odd. Mark Thiessen, Chambers’s lawyer, told the jury that a pair of high‑priced Christian Louboutin heels got caught on the Porsche’s gas pedal. He claimed that caused the crash and that her “designer shoes” slipped the vehicle into a dangerous bend. Prosecutor Andrew Figliuzzi countered that Chambers was intent on showing off the sports car, standing in the front seat next to two friends. He said the driver was “itching to show off” the Porsche, not knocked off by sandals.
The prosecution points out that Chambers’ blood alcohol measured a staggering 0.301—nearly four times the legal limit—about an hour after the crash. They also used a testimony from a woman named Briana Iturrino. Iturrino had been on McMullin’s date. She said that while they were leaving Voodoo Doughnuts at 2:25 a.m., she saw a bright, fast‑moving car heading toward her. The Porsche was travelling above 70 mph, making a tight turn that directly threatened her and McMullin. By the time she could shout a warning, McMullin was gone, flung 30 feet from the vehicle.
“It looked like McMullin got hit in the middle of the highway and then the car crashed into a pole,” Iturrino told the court. The police immediately arrived and set up a first‑aid station. McMullin passed away at the scene, while Chambers and her two passengers walked out with injuries.
Prosecutors say the crash shows a reckless driver. They’re pushing for a manslaughter verdict, making clear that speed and drunkenness were decisive factors. Chambers has pleaded not guilty. The judge has outlawed any mention in the jury’s deliberations of the civil lawsuit that’s stuck in court, which was filed by McMullin’s parents for more than $1 million in damages.
The civil suit is still on. It names Chambers as the shooter and also blames her former partner, hedge‑fund manager Xuan Si, for borrowing the Porsche. Si argues he never owned the vehicle; he says they bought it together and that Chambers paid for it out of the joint account. He also denies that Chambers had a drinking or drug problem, pointing out he never saw her driving drunk or taking drugs.
Another passenger on that night, Sebastian Lopez, testified that Chambers was an “alcoholic.” Lopez says Si knew she was often drinking and using cocaine. He added that she had driven drunk a handful of times even after getting the Porsche.
The defense lowers the case to an argument about expensive fashion and a seat‑belt caught, while protesters push the narrative that the driver was negligent and dangerous. The jury will decide if the woman’s sexton‑hour style or a drunken, speeding drive caused the death. The story shows how one night of excess can derail a life— and how that night will be remembered in a Houston courtroom for months to come.
Source: New York Post
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