A grieving Orange County mother broke her silence for the first time about the loss of her son to a drunken driver.

Luis DeJesus was killed by a drunken driver last June while walking home from a grocery store on Route 300 in New Windsor.

Michael Rule left the scene of the accident and tried to cover it up. He was later found in Newburgh, thanks to witnesses who followed him.

The 34-year-old former Marine was sentenced Thursday to up to seven years behind bars for mowing down DeJesus and leaving him to die.

"Justice will never be served until the laws change, until people of influence change their attitudes,” said DeJesus’ mother, Sonia Quiles-Borrero.

Borrero says stricter drunken driving laws and more pedestrian-friendly walkways also need to be in place.