People v. Bahena CA3

FACTS AND HISTORY OF THE PROCEEDINGS

On May 15, 2022, at about 6:40 a.m., Mycajoy P. and her parents, Nelson and Marilyn P., were driving to church in their SUV on Elder Creek Road. (Hereafter, we identify the family members by their first names.) Mycajoy was driving, Nelson was in the front passenger seat, and Marilyn was in the back middle seat. All three were wearing seatbelts. It was a sunny day; the weather was clear. The family drove towards the traffic light at the intersection of Elder Creek Road, an east-west city street, and Florin Perkins Road, a north-south street. As they approached the intersection at a speed of 40 to 45 miles per hour, the light was green. When they were almost past the middle of the intersection, a car traveling at a speed of 45 miles per hour ran the red light, striking the SUV on the driver’s side and pushing it over a fence into a field. Defendant, the driver of the car, got out of his car and lay on the ground. Inside the SUV, Nelson had lost consciousness. When Mycajoy was able to wake him, her father asked what happened. Nelson could not move because of the pain in the left side of his body. Mycajoy’s feet were trapped under the pedals. She…