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A drunk driver drove the wrong way on Highway 24 in Lafayette and caused a fatal accident.

Fatal freeway crash: A drunk driver who was going the wrong way on Highway 24 crashed into another vehicle and killed the driver Friday in Lafayette.

•   A drunk driver drove the wrong way on the freeway and crashed head-on into another vehicle.

•   The other driver was killed in the freeway crash.

•   A third car was involved in the accident. 

•   The  drunk driver was arrested.

The deadly drunk driving accident occurred at around 1:30 a.m., according to a report in the San Francisco Chronicle.

California Highway Patrol Officer John Fransen said 20-year-old Annelise McKay of Brentwood was driving a Toyota Avalon, with only one working headlight, eastbound in the westbound lanes of the freeway near St. Stephens Road.

The Toyota crashed head-on into a westbound Geo Metro driven by 51-year-old Alvaro Cruz of Pittsburg. The impact caused the Metro to spin out and crash into a Buick sedan.

Cruz died at the scene.

The driver of the Buick suffered from pain and was taken to a hospital by his wife.

The wrong-way drunk driver sustained minor injuries. She was taken to John Muir Medical Center and then released into police custody. She was arrested on drunk driving charges. The CHP did not say whether she would face any additional charges.

Lafayette Freeway Crash Lawyers

A teen passenger was killed in a DUI crash in Pomona. (Video capture: NBC News)

Fatal DUI crash: A 19-year-old female passenger was killed Sunday when a 20-year-old drunk driver lost control of their vehicle on North San Antonio Avenue in Pomona. The car crashed into several parked vehicles and then rolled over.

•   An underage drunk driver lost control of her car, slammed into several parked cars, and then rolled her own vehicle.

•   One of her passengers died at the scene. Three others were hospitalized with serious injuries.

•   The drunk driver was arrested for DUI causing death and manslaughter.

The deadly solo car accident occurred at 1:38 a.m., according to a report in the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.

Pomona police Sgt. Christian Hsu said in a written statement that 20-year-old Raelene Martinez of Ontario was driving a 1995 Toyota Camry northbound on San Antonio Avenue at the time of the accident. She had four passengers in her car.

When she reached the 1500 block of San Antonio Avenue, Martinez lost control of her vehicle. She slammed into several parked vehicles and then rolled the Camry.

One of her passengers, a 19-year-old Upland woman whose name was withheld pending notification of next of kin, died at the scene.

 NBC News reported that the three other passengers — 18-year-old Frank Camacho of Ontario, 19-year-old Ernie Vega of Upland, and 23-year-old Gabriel Venegas of Ontario — suffered serious injuries and were hospitalized. Their injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.

Martinez also sustained injuries. She was arrested at the scene for drunk driving causing death and manslaughter, NBC News reported.

Pomona Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

A female passenger was killed in a DUI crash on Highway 43 in Corcoran.

Fatal DUI crash: A passenger was killed Monday when a drunk driver lost control of his pickup truck and rolled it several times on Highway 43 in Corcoran, about 50 miles south of Fresno.

•      A drunk driver lost control of his pickup truck on a rural highway and it drifted off the side of the road.

•      The driver overcorrected and caused the truck to skid, flip over, and roll several times.

•      One of the passengers was ejected and died on impact. The other two passengers were hospitalized with serious injuries.

•      The drunk driver suffered major injuries and faces felony DUI charges.

The deadly rural highway accident occurred at about 6 a.m., according to a report in the Fresno Bee.

California Highway Patrol officials said 41-year-old Bakersfield resident Reynaldo Garcia was drunk when he lost control of his pickup truck on Highway 43 near Nevada Avenue.

Garcia was traveling at about 60 mph when his truck drifted off the right side of the road onto a dirt shoulder, the Hanford Sentinel reported.

Garcia reportedly cranked the steering wheel to the left and then back to the right to to try to get back on the road, but the truck bounced onto the asphalt, then went back into the dirt.

Garcia again turned sharply to try to get the truck back on the road, but that caused the vehicle to skid sideways, flip over, and roll several times before coming to rest on the roadway.

One of Garcia’s passengers, 69-year-old Mary Alice Tarango, also of Bakersfield, was not wearing a seat belt and was thrown from the truck, the CHP report said. She died on impact.

Two other passengers — 60-year-old Job Garcia and 31-year-old Valeria Ramirez, both of Bakersfield — were injured in the accident and were taken to Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno to be treated.

Garcia, who sustained major injuries, was airlifted by helicopter to the same hospital. Upon release from the hospital, Garcia will be booked into the county jail on charges of  felony driving under the influence, the CHP said.

Fresno Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

A mother and her two sons were killed by a drunk driver in Daly City. (Video capture: ABC News)

A Sunnyvale man is being held without bail on triple homicide charges after a drunk driving accident killed a mother and her two sons Saturday night in Daly City. A fourth victim was critically injured.

•   A 28-year-old man drank for several hours with friends and then got behind the wheel of a BMW, rear-ended another car, and sped away on city streets at 60 mph.

•   The BMW then T-boned a Toyota, killing a mother and her two sons, and critically injuring a fourth person.

•   The drunk driver, who is being held without bail, was charged with three counts of gross vehicular manslaughter, felony DUI causing great bodily injury, and misdemeanor hit-and-run.

The fatal car accident occurred shortly after 8 p.m., according to a CBS News report. 

Assistant District Attorney Al Serrato said 28-year-old Sunnyvale resident Denis Pereirade Macedo drank heaviily for nearly five hours before he got behind the wheel and rear-ended another vehicle at a stop sign on Eastmoor Avenue.

Macedo then drove around the vehicle and fled the scene in his BMW, heading west on Eastmoor at a speed of up to 60 mph, Serrato said.

A few seconds later, Macedo T-boned a Toyota Tercel that was making a U-turn. The driver of the Tercel, 50-year-old Josefa Osorio Acevedo, was killed, along with her two sons, 23-year-old Amado Osorio Acevedo and 15-year-old Josue Osorio.

Another passenger in the car, Amado Acevedo’s girlfriend, 20-year-old Sarah Sangraw of Daly City, was hospitalized with major injuries, according to a San Francisco Chronicle report. She remained in the hospital on Tuesday.

Macedo was arrested and booked into the San Mateo County jail, where he is being held without bail. His blood alcohol level at the time of the accident was 0.18 percent, Serrato said. That is more than double the legal limit of 0.08 percent.

The drunk driver was charged with three counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while driving under the influence, felony DUI causing great bodily injury, and misdemeanor hit-and-run, Serrato said.

According to the San Mateo County Times, Macedo was already on probation for a Santa Clara County drunk driving conviction when the crash happened.

Daly City Wrongful Death Lawyers

Two drivers were killed in a freeway accident on I-5 near Woodland,

Two drivers died Saturday night in a fiery freeway accident on Interstate 5 north of Woodland. Police say alcohol may have been involved.

•    An Oldsmobile was stopped in the fast lane of a freeway late at night, facing the wrong direction, with the lights turned off.

•    A Honda approached, could not see the blacked-out Oldsmobile, and crashed into it. The impact forced the Honda to roll on top of the Oldsmobile.

•    Both vehicles immediately burst into flames and were totally engulfed with the drivers trapped inside.

•    Both drivers died at the scene.

•    Police believe alcohol may have been a factor in the accident.

The fatal car accident occurred at around 11:10 p.m., at the I-5/I-505 off-ramp near Dunnigan, according to a report in the Woodland Daily Democrat.

California Highway Patrol officer Bryan Konvalin said the accident involved two vehicles that burst into flames when one of them rolled on top of the other.

Konvalin told the Daily Democrat that the CHP had received a call about a “hazardous vehicle” that was stopped in the northbound No. 1 lane.

That vehicle — later was identified as a  1998 Oldsmobile Achieva driven by 40-year-old Jorge Mora Arias of Woodland – had its lights off and was possibly facing the wrong way.

CHP officers were responding to the scene when a second vehicle — a 1992 Honda Accord driven by a 34-year-old woman from Willows — crashed into the Oldsmobile and was thrown on top of it.

Both vehicles immediately burst into flames with the drivers trapped inside. Firefighters battled the blaze, but could not get to the vehicles to rescue the trapped drivers.

Both drivers died at the scene. Police withheld the name of the Willows woman pending notification of her next of kin.

Police are investigating the accident, but said they believe alcohol may have been a factor.

What happens when the driver who is at fault dies in the accident?

Sometimes in a serious accident the individual who caused the crash suffers fatal injuries. Can the family of an innocent victim who also died in the accident still make a claim?

The answer is yes. The case survives even when the wrongdoer doesn’t. The insurance carrier for the car that the wrongdoer was driving remains liable for damages. If that policy does not have enough coverage, additional compensation may be sought via Underinsured Motorist coverage from the insurance carrier for the vehicle in which the innocent victim was a driver or passenger.

If a lawsuit is necessary, it would be filed against the estate of the wrongdoer. If there is no estate, then the family of the innocent victim can force an estate to be set up to handle the lawsuit.

Woodland Freeway Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A drunk driver couldn’t negotiate this curve in Vacaville and slammed his car into the telephone pole, injuring two passengers.

Police arrested a 21-year-old man for a drunk driving accident that seriously injured two passengers Monday night in Vacaville. Police were looking for a third passenger who left the scene.

•   A group of friends were drinking in a local park. One of them, who was deemed to be ‘least intoxicated,’ drove them home.

•   The driver failed to negotiate a curve and slammed the car into a telephone pole.

•   Two of the passengers were hospitalized with major injuries. The other one left the scene.

•   The 21-year-old driver was arrested on charges of felony drunk driving causing injury and driving on a suspended license.

 The car accident occurred at about 11 p.m., according to a news report in the Vacaville Reporter.

Police said 21-year-old Vacaville resident Anthony Barragan-Sullivan had been drinking with friends in a park before the accident.

Barragan-Sullivan got behind the wheel of the car, which belonged to one of the passengers, to drive everyone home ”because he was believed to be the least intoxicated,” police said.

He was unable to negotiate a curve on Dobbins Street near Deodora Street (see photo). The car hit the curb and slammed into a telephone pole, knocking out power to the area.

A passenger who had been riding in the front seat got out of the car and left the scene. The two back seat passengers were trapped inside the wrecked vehicle.

Barragan-Sullivan called police and remained at the scene. Emergency crews had to cut away part of the vehicle to extricate the two trapped women, whose names were not released.

Both of the women suffered major injuries and were hospitalized. One of them was listed in serious condition and the other was listed in stable condition, police told the Reporter. No further information about the nature of their injuries was released.

Barragan-Sullivan was arrested at the scene and then taken to a hospital to be seen by a doctor. Once he was medically cleared, he was booked into Solano County Jail and charged with driving on a suspended driver’s license and felony driving under the influence, resulting in injury.

Police were still looking for the woman who was riding in the front seat in order to ask her about the accident.

Vacaville Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

Three pedestrians were killed by a drunk driver in Anaheim.

Fatal pedestrian accident: A mother, daughter, and niece were struck and killed by a drunk driver Sunday night in Anaheim.

•   Three women were crossing the street after a baby shower when they were struck by a drunk driver.

•   All three women were killed in the accident.

•   The driver who hit them was arrested on charges of felony drunk driving and vehicular manslaughter.

The deadly drunk driving accident occurred at about 11 p.m., according to an NBC News report.

Anaheim Police Sgt. Bob Dunn said the three victims — 56-year-old Carmen Mendoza, daughter Sheyla Mendoza, 21, and niece Stephanie Henriquez, also 21 — were walking home from a baby shower when the accident happened.

The women were crossing Western Avenue (at Lincoln Avenue) when they were stuck by a red four-door Honda Civic traveling northbound on Western. His rate of speed was not immediately known.

All three women were killed. Sheyla Mendoza died at the scene, according to a report in the Long Beach Press-Telegram.  The other two victims were taken to UCI Medical Center, where they were pronounced dead.

The driver, 40-year-old Anthony Lewis Sanchez of Buena Park, was arrested charges of felony drunk driving and vehicular manslaughter, Dunn said.

Sanchez and his unidentified female passenger both suffered minor injuries and were taken to area hospitals to be treated. Sanchezs was booked into the Orange County Men’s Intake Release Center with bail set at $500,000. He was scheduled to appear in Central Jail Court on Monday.

Anaheim Pedestrian Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented the families of pedestrian accident victims for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A Caltrans worker was critically injured by a hit-and-run drunk driver on Riverside.

Police caught and arrested a hit-and-run drunk driver who struck and critically injured a Caltrans worker Monday night on Highway 91 in Riverside.

•  A Caltrans worker was setting out cones in an area between Highway 91 and an offramp when a drunk driver veered off the road and hit him.

•   The motorist fled the scene but was caught and arrested about a mile away.

•   The victim suffered critical injuries.

•   The hit-and-run driver was charged with  felony hit and run, DUI causing great bodily injury, and driving without a license.

The pedestrian accident occurred at about 9:30 p.m., according to a report in the Riverside Press-Enterprise.

California Highway Patrol officials said a 37-year-old Caltrans worker, whose name was not released, was setting out traffic cones in the area between westbound Highway 91 and the 14th Street offramp at the time of the accident.

The suspect, 30-year-old Enrique Lopez Lopez of Moreno Valley, veered onto the right shoulder, struck the worker and fled the scene, the CHP said.

“He never attempted to stop or hit the brakes,” Caltrans spokeswoman Terri Kasinga told the Press-Enterprise. “The other worker just heard a thud and saw his partner slide across the ground while the driver just kept on going.”

The victim suffered critical injuries and remained hospitalized.

Riverside police found Lopez about a mile away, near Central Avenue . He was stopped in a 1996 Honda Accord with major front-end damage.

Police arrested him on charges of felony hit and run, DUI causing great bodily injury, and driving without a license. He was booked into booked at Robert Presley Detention Center, according to an ABC News report. His bail was set at $50,000.

The victim was an Azusa resident who was working for Lake Forest-based SEMA Construction, the Caltrans contractor on the Highway 91 carpool lane project.

Riverside Pedestrian Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented pedestrian accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

A police officer was seriously injured when he was hit by a drunk driver in San Diego.

A San Diego police officer remains hospitalized with major injuries after his vehicle was broadsided early Sunday morning by a drunk driver who ran a red light at Mission Gorge Road in Santee.

•    A 21-year-old drunk driver exited a highway at high speed and ran a red light at the end of the exit.

•    The drunk driver T-boned a San Diego Police Department patrol car on the driver’s side, seriously injuring a 24-year-old officer.

•    The officer had to be extricated from his vehicle with the Jaws of Life. He suffered major injuries and required multiple surgeries.

•    The drunk driver’s blood alcohol level was almost three times the legal limit. 

The drunk driving accident occurred at about 2:30 a.m., according to an NBC News report.

San Diego Police Department Lt. Jim Walker said an on-duty police officer, later identified as 24-year-old Travis Betley, was returning to his beat after dropping off a prisoner at Las Colinas Detention Facility at the time of the accident.

Walker said 21-year-old Lake Forest (Orange County) resident Samuel Sullivan exited State Route 125 at a high rate of speed and ran the red light at the end of the exit, on Mission Gorge Road.

Sullivan’s red Toyota pickup truck slammed into the driver-side door of Betley’s patrol car. The high-speed impact knocked both vehicles off of the road.

Betley was trapped in his vehicle. It took emergency personnel almost 45 minutes to extricate him, using the Jaws of Life. The young officer suffered multiple injuries, including a broken leg and internal injuries. He was expected to undergo several surgeries that could prevent him from returning to work for up to a year, according to the NBC report.

Sullivan, who admitted he had been drinking, was arrested at the scene. He was treated for minor injuries and booked into jail.

UPDATE | January 7: Sullivan pleaded not guilty to felony drunk driving charges in relation to the accident. Deputy District Attorney James Romo said Sullivan’s blood alcohol level at the time of the accident was 0.22, almost three times the legal limit. He faces up to six years in prison if he is convicted, Romo said. [Source:  CBS Channel 8 News.]

San Diego Drunk Driving Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.

An elderly woman was killed in West Covina when street racers crashed into a minivan in which she was riding.

Two suspected street racers were arrested for murder after causing a car accident on Christmas night that killed a 90-year-old woman in West Covina.

•   Two men were street racing and ran a red light. One of them slammed into a Dodge van. The other fled the scene.

•   A 90-year-old woman was riding in the van in a secured wheelchair. She was ejected on impact and died at the scene.

•   The victim’s son, who was driving the van, suffered serious head injuries and was hospitalized.

•   Both of the racing drivers were arrested on murder charges. The one who hit the van also was charged with felony drunk driving. 

The fatal drunk driving accident occurred at 9 p.m., according to a report in the San Bernardino Sun.

West Covina police Lt. Jerry Pearman said 30-year-old Vincent Lopez of Rialto was street racing in a Mitsubishi Eclipse at the time of the deadly crash.

Lopez was racing against a Ford Escort driven by 34-yearold Victor Hugo Sanchez, also of Rialto, Pearman said.

The two vehicles were racing southbound on Lark Ellen Avenue from Cameron Avenue, according to witnesses, when they ran a red light at high speed. The Mitsubishi broadsided a Dodge Caravan that was traveling eastbound on Merced Avenue, Pearman said.

“At the time of the accident, the two were still racing,”  West Covina police Cpl. Rudy Lopez told  CBS News. “Only one of the vehicles collided into the van. The other driver actually took off and went eastbound on Merced, and left the scene.”

The Dodge Caravan was driven by 72-year-old Jaime Ochoa, who was taking his mother — 90-year-old Celia La Torre of West Covina — home from Queen of the Valley Hospital, according to a CBS News report. La Torre was seated in a wheelchair that was secured inside the van.

When the Mitsubishi plowed into the Dodge van, La Torre was ejected from the vehicle. She died at the scene. Ochoa suffered a serious head injury and was taken to Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center.

Lopez sustained a broken leg. He was arrested at the scene on charges of drunk driving and murder. He was then taken to Queen of the Valley Hospital, where he remained hospitalized. His passenger fled the scene on foot but was found nearby and questioned by police, Pearman said.

Sanchez was arrested Wednesday in Pomona. He was charged with murder.

Investigators said both men had been drinking in a bar in the 200 block of South Glendora Avenue less than an hour before the accident. Their bail was set at $1 million apiece, according to the Sun.

West Covina Car Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.