Santa Rosa peace officer killed in fatal crash; other driver accused of 5th DUI
SANTA ROSA -- A Santa Rosa man with multiple convictions for driving under the influence is again accused of driving drunk on Friday in Santa Rosa and causing a collision that killed a 31-year-old woman.
Santa Rosa police identified the victim on Saturday as Santa Rosa resident Jessica Avila Munoz, a peace officer for the Sonoma County Probation Department.
Munoz was making a left turn from Lombardi Court onto eastbound Sebastopol Road when her white Honda was allegedly struck by a Dodge pickup truck being driven by 68-year-old Nhan Van Nguyen, who is accused of running a red light coming from westbound Sebastopol Road, according to police.
Munoz's vehicle careened into a third vehicle, a Prius. That driver was uninjured but Munoz was trapped in her vehicle with major injuries.
Firefighters extricated her after arriving at the scene of the 1:35 p.m. collision. She was taken to a hospital where she died from her injuries.
Nguyen was also taken to the hospital but ended up being uninjured. Police said he showed signs of intoxication and an investigation at the hospital determined he was under the influence of alcohol at the time.
Nguyen has four prior convictions for DUI and was driving with a suspended licence, according to police. He was booked into Sonoma County Jail on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter and felony driving under the influence causing great bodily injury.
The intersection at Lombardi Court and Sebastopol Road was closed for about six hours during the investigation.
"Jessica Avila Munoz, a sworn peace officer for the Sonoma County Probation Department, was driving to pick up her 13-year old her daughter from school and was killed in a vehicle crash by a suspected drunk driver," the county probation office said in a statement Saturday.
