Fort Worth family mourns loved one 1 year later as accused drunk driver remains free on bond

FORT WORTH, Texas - Nearly one year after a wrong-way crash in Fort Worth that killed a woman, her family is expressing their frustration that the suspected drunk driver was released on bond — one day after the crash.

The family of 22-year-old Brianna Lopez gathered at her gravesite Friday to continue grieving one year after their overwhelming loss.

The visit came just hours after they attended a Tarrant County court hearing for Aaron Roberts, the suspected drunk driver accused of killing Lopez.

Police say Roberts was going the wrong way on Chisholm Trail Parkway in Fort Worth when he slammed head-on into Lopez, causing her death.

"It’s hard to wake up every day knowing she’s not here," said her mother, Yolanda Murillo.

It was September 2023 when Lopez was driving home after spending time with friends. 

Roberts, who was 32 at the time of the crash, is no longer in custody. He’s been free since posting bond a day after the accident.

Lopez’s uncle, Robert Murillo, says the frustration has been difficult.

"It was hard watching this person walk in and out of that courtroom after… after what he left us with," he said. "My sister and all of us were out there at the scene when this accident happened. While she was trapped in her vehicle lifeless, he walked away with a bruise on his forehead and then went home the next day."

Lopez would now be 23 if she’d survived. Her family remains hopeful about justice and keeping her story prominent as a message to everyone about drinking and driving. 

"Speak up. Ask somebody to drive you home," Yolanda implored. "Save your life and somebody else’s. It’s not worth it."

Roberts' hearing on Friday was to address legal matters between prosecutors and his attorneys. His next court hearing is set for November.