FORT WORTH, Texas — Christy Jack says she still remembers the way the Chevrolet Cavalier inside Chante Mallard's garage appeared.
The car's hood and roof were dented, she says. Bits of Gregory Biggs' hair were stuck in the trim.
Investigators found the vehicle's seats detached and charred in the yard. Mallard told an acquaintance she lit fire to the upholstery to try and hide evidence of a crash that occurred months earlier.
"Her inhumanity, callousness, and lack of remorse for what she'd done deserved so much more than just a 5-year maximum sentence or even a 10-year maximum sentence for tampering with evidence," Jack, who prosecuted the case, said.
In October 2001, Mallard hit Biggs on her way home from a night out. Authorities believe she was drunk and high.
Instead of calling 911 or rendering aid, Mallard continued to drive with the homeless man lodged in her windshield. She parked the car in her garage and left him to die, periodically returning to apologize to the moaning victim.
"She could've saved him," Jack told jurors during closing arguments in 2003. "Doesn't that speak volumes about her character?"
Friends had helped Mallard move Biggs' body to Cobb Park. Four months later, Mallard bragged about the incident to an acquaintance who later called 911.
The case drew national attention. At least three moviemakers adapted the story for film. Showrunners for Law & Order, CSI, and My Name is Earl modeled episodes off the incident.
"There was nothing like it on the books," Jack told WFAA Monday. To secure a stiffer penalty, prosecutors convinced jurors Mallard effectively prevented Biggs' rescue by hiding him in the garage.
A jury convicted Mallard of Felony Murder and sentenced her to 50 years behind bars in a decision that set some legal precedent. Mallard is eligible for parole in 2027.
Over time, interest in the blockbuster trial waned.
This weekend, interest in the trial renewed.
"I started getting texts and my phone was blowing up," Jack said. "Immediately, everybody jumps to 'This is Chante Mallard 2.'"
White Settlement police Saturday arrested a man who allegedly hit a pedestrian and drove 38 miles with the victim's body lodged in his front seat.
Authorities believe Nestor Lujan Flores hit the 45-year-old, who was crossing the I-30 service road at Cockrell Hill in Dallas. The violent crash forced the victim inside the vehicle.
Lujan Flores drove his mangled car to a White Settlement Jack-In-The-Box, where authorities said the vehicle "gave out." It's not yet clear where he was going.
The man arrived at the restaurant between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m., police say. A patron first called 911 hours later, after 11 p.m.
WFAA obtained audio of that call.
“I just came through the drive-thru and there’s a guy in the car," the caller said. "It looks like he’s been in a car wreck. He’s just slumped over in his seat and I just wanted to make sure he’s okay.”
An affidavit for Lujan Flores's arrest indicates he entered the restaurant around the same time to ask for a phone charger. He told employees he was waiting for his brother to pick him up, the court documents show.
Police arrived and say they found Lujan Flores in the car, slumped over, in bloody clothes.
Lujan Flores told the responding officers he thought he'd hit a deer, they said.
White Settlement Police chief Christopher Cook said the arresting officer remarked his patrol unit "smelled like a brewery" when he put Lujan Flores inside. Police administered a blood-alcohol test. Its results are pending analysis.
"You're so impaired that you strike a pedestrian on a service road and you don't even realize it's a human being," Cook said Tuesday. "I can't fathom that level of impairment."
Arresting documents allege Lujan Flores stumbled when he exited the sedan. He remained severely impaired, Cook alleges, several hours after he stopped drinking.
Investigators are trying to determine where Lujan Flores was before the crash. Flock Cameras spotted his car heading east in Arlington at 6 p.m.
If a bartender or waiter overserved the man, they could face criminal penalties.
The Dallas County Sheriff's Office has taken control of the investigation. Tarrant District Attorney Phil Sorrells said the Dallas County district attorney will alone prosecute the case.
Jack, now a prominent Fort Worth defense attorney with Varghese Summersett, suspects attorneys will review Mallard's case as they prepare for a potential trial.
"The cases aren't identical, but they're very similar," Jack said. She noted one key difference between the two cases.
"Going to a fast food restaurant - still being out in public and having evidence in the car with you would also suggest he didn't know (he'd hit a person)," she said. "There was no doubt Chante Mallard knew."
It's not yet clear what charges the Dallas County district attorney will bring against Lujan Flores. Sorrells predicted prosecutors there would pursue intoxication manslaughter.
In 2020, Plano police arrested Lujan Flores for DWI. He was convicted in Collin County in 2021.