People v. Garcia CA4/2

FACTS AND PROCEDURE

On the night of April 28, 2013, defendant was driving his mother’s vehicle on

Fourteenth Street in Riverside, with his girlfriend in the passenger seat. Fourteenth Street

curves as it approaches Sedgwick and, as a witness described it “At that bend, you’re

kind of a little bit blindsided.” Defendant quickly accelerated at the previous

intersection, passed another car, changed lanes, and was going approximately 65 miles

per hour as he approached Sedgwick. Just after the light at Sedgwick turned red,

defendant collided with a Saturn going in the opposite direction as it made a left turn onto

Sedgwick. The driver and front passenger of the Saturn were killed. The rear passenger

was seriously injured. Defendant left the scene at his girlfriend’s suggestion because he

was on parole, but turned himself in the following day.

On November 1, 2013, the People filed an information alleging a single count of

vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence (Pen. Code, § 192, subd. (c)(1))1 and a

All section references are to the Penal Code unless otherwise indicated.

2 single count of hit and run driving involving injury (Veh. Code, § 20001, subd. (a)).

Both…