Parents of Lennox Lake testify during emotional second day of Banda trial

SAN DIEGO (KUSI) — The parents of an injured 6-year-old boy took the stand Tuesday in the trial of a Mexican citizen charged in a hit-and-run DUI that left their son hospitalized.

It was an emotionally charged day in court as the parents of 6-year-old Lennox Lake took the stand and recounted the horrific events of May 6, when their Honda Accord was t-boned on the way home from Disneyland.

39-year-old Constantino Banda, an often-deported Mexican citizen, is charged with the hit-and-run crash. Prosecutors say Banda was driving drunk and that his blood alcohol content was twice the legal limit.

But Monday, Banda’s defense team said Banda wasn’t behind the wheel at the time of the crash. It was his friend who lied in exchange for immunity.

Prosecutors maintain Banda was the one who sped through a stop sign in San Ysidro, hitting the Lake family and leaving little Lennox hospitalized. He underwent two surgeries and suffered major head injuries. 

This case garnered national attention when immigration officials announced Banda had been deported at least 15 times in the last 15 years, the most recent in January of this year.

Court records also show Banda had previous run-ins with the law, including a 2006 arrest for DUI.

If convicted, he faces seven years and eight months in prison. 

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