Staff Reports
Photo from DUI crash scene on April 7, 2013 (Photo Courtesy: nbclosangeles.com)
Pomona – On Mon., Aug. 25, Raelene Martinez, 21, plead no contest in a DUI fatal collision case from an accident that occurred on Sun., Apr. 7, 2013, which took the life of her passenger, Serena Vargas.
According to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, the collision occurred at about 1:30 a.m. on San Antonio Avenue, south of San Bernardino Road in Pomona. At the time, the 20-year old Martinez was said to have left the scene of a party – where she had been drinking alcohol – following an altercation. She got behind the wheel, with four other passengers in the car.
Martinez began to fight with the front passenger because she believed the person was involved in the fight at the party. At that point, Martinez took her hands off the steering wheel and began hitting the front passenger. The car lost control, hit a curb and two other vehicles, and then flipped over.
A back seat passenger, Vargas, 19, was ejected from the car and died at the scene. The three other passengers were also injured. Martinez was hospitalized, and later arrested and charged with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, DUI casing injury, driving with a .08 percent blood alcohol causing injury, and a special allegation of personally inflicting great bodily injury in the commission of a crime.
The D.A.’s office stated that Martinez’ sentencing was scheduled for Aug. 29 in Los Angeles County Superior Court in Pomona. Under the terms of a negotiated plea agreement, she was expected to receive six years in state prison.
