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Two DUIs, two stolen cars, same sentence

Jason Auslander
The Aspen Times

A 26-year-old man received the same sentence Tuesday for receiving two DUIs as he did last month for stealing two cars.

Marvin Luna-Lovo pleaded guilty Tuesday to a charge of DUI, while the second DUI charge was dismissed. He also pleaded guilty to a charge of harassment, which he received after fighting in the Pitkin County Jail.

The El Salvador native picked up the first DUI Oct. 30, then was released from jail to a sober friend. However, 30 minutes after his release, police pulled him over again for driving erratically and arrested him for DUI for a second time.



A little more than a month later, on Dec. 2, Luna-Lovo was caught on surveillance video parking a car reported stolen from in front of Zane’s Tavern in Aspen. Less than two months after that — on Jan. 26 — Luna-Lovo stole a Jeep Cherokee from the Brush Creek Intercept Lot while the owners were nearby trying to start another vehicle.

Luna-Lovo pleaded guilty in May to two felony counts of aggravated theft of a motor vehicle and faced between two and six years in prison. However, Aspen District Judge Chris Seldin in July sentenced him to three years supervised probation, which included abstaining from drugs and alcohol, getting any treatment deemed necessary for drugs and alcohol, being monitored for drugs and alcohol and completing an anger management class.




On Tuesday, Pitkin County Judge Erin Fernandez-Ely handed down the same, concurrent sentence, though prosecutor Sarah Talbott asked for extra jail time.

“I do not intend on putting Mr. Luna-Lovo in jail today,” Fernandez-Ely said.

Alex Haynes, Luna-Lovo’s public defender, told the court that despite the fact that his client only got out of jail three weeks ago, he already has a job at a restaurant. Luna-Lovo was previously a chef and wants to continue in that line of work, Haynes said. In addition, his probation has been transferred to Arapahoe County, where he has family, he said.

“There’s a surprising amount of good things going on for him,” Haynes said.

jauslander@aspentimes.com