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Driver sentenced in death of former Queens student-athlete Lance Sotelo
By Elvis Menayese
September 23, 2026 at 2:38 PM EDT
A driver who struck and killed a former Queens University student-athlete in Charlotte’s NoDa neighborhood earlier this year pleaded guilty Tuesday in Superior Court.
Judge Reggie McKnight sentenced 29-year-old Q’Laundra Hood to 30 days in the Mecklenburg County jail and 36 months of probation.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said Hood ran a red light at The Plaza and East 36th Street at about 5:45 p.m. in January and struck 25-year-old Lance Sotelo, who was out for a run.
Sotelo was a former Queens University student-athlete and was well known in Charlotte’s LGBTQ+ community.
A candlelight vigil was held earlier this year to remember Sotelo.
Judge Reggie McKnight sentenced 29-year-old Q’Laundra Hood to 30 days in the Mecklenburg County jail and 36 months of probation.
Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said Hood ran a red light at The Plaza and East 36th Street at about 5:45 p.m. in January and struck 25-year-old Lance Sotelo, who was out for a run.
Sotelo was a former Queens University student-athlete and was well known in Charlotte’s LGBTQ+ community.
A candlelight vigil was held earlier this year to remember Sotelo.