ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KRQE) – The driver caught doing 140 mph on Montgomery last year won’t be going back to jail after taking a plea deal in the case. Facing a judge Tuesday, Adam Pacino asked for mercy for using Montgomery as his own personal racetrack last summer while pleading guilty to a charge of aggravated fleeing.
Pacino was first arrested in September 2021. He spent roughly three months in jail before a judge let him out on conditions of release in December while he awaited trial. At Tuesday’s sentencing hearing, Pacino said he’s already spent three months in jail and it was a nightmare he’ll never shake.
Police say they tracked Pacino traveling more than 100 miles per hour along Montgomery three separate times and he topped out at a speed of 140 miles per hour. He eventually pulled into a parking lot at the Dirty Bourbon and attempted to walk away from the vehicle. Police say Pacino was extremely intoxicated and in possession of a loaded handgun.
Tuesday, he pled guilty to the chase and faced up to nine more months behind bars under the plea deal. Prosecutors wanted him to serve jail time, but the defense wanted probation.
No one disputed the serious danger he posed or the insults he fired off at the officers after they nabbed him.
The prosecutor also drove home Pacino’s past, describing his problems with meth, alcohol, street racing, and another run-in with police at a high school football game. The defense claimed Pacino, who sells cars privately for a living, supports his ill mother, did rehab, and suffered enough in jail last year.
After hearing both sides, 2nd Judicial District Court Judge Joseph Montano decided a year and a half of probation would fit the crime. The judge also gave Pacino a lecture. “Let me clear with you: If there are any issues with probation this will be a zero-tolerance probation,” said Judge Montano.
The judge also told Pacino if he gets in trouble again or fails one drug or alcohol test, he’s going straight to jail to serve the rest of his sentence. Prosecutors say they had to drop the DWI charge due to lack of evidence since Pacino didn’t take field sobriety tests or a breathalyzer.
