One of the three teens killed in an explosive accident three
weeks ago had a low level of alcohol in his blood at the time of
the crash, but the driver and another passenger tested negative for
drugs and alcohol, according to the toxicology reports.
Hollister – One of the three teens killed in an explosive accident three weeks ago had a low level of alcohol in his blood at the time of the crash, but the driver and another passenger tested negative for drugs and alcohol, according to the toxicology reports.
Albert Andrew Hernandez, 13, had a blood alcohol level of .02, but negative tests were returned for Vanessa Jimenez, 13, and 16-year-old Armando Limas, who was driving the stolen Jaguar when it crashed into a power pole on Fairview and Shore roads on Oct. 4. All three teens tested negative for drugs.
The sole survivor of the crash, a 13-year-old girl who is not being named because she is a juvenile, is in stable condition but has no recollection of the incident, said California Highway Patrol Officer Terry Mayes.
The legal blood alcohol limit to drive a car for an adult is below .08, but the law has a zero-tolerance for anyone under 21, Mayes said. Officers found a charred liqueur bottle inside the car, she said.
“The fact that he had been drinking in and of itself is
consistent with the officers’ observations and interviews,” Mayes said. “But (that level) should not, for a kid his size, have any impact.”
Hernandez was driving the car before it was stopped by a CHP officer for driving recklessly on Frazier Lake Road around 10:30pm, Mayes said.
As the officer was walking up to the car, he saw one male slide into the back seat and another male get out of the back seat, hop into the driver’s seat and take off at speeds up to 100 mph with the head lights turned off, she said. Mayes confirmed Wednesday that Hernandez was driving when the teenagers were initially pulled over and it was Limas who fled from police.
About a minute later the car lost control when Limas failed to negotiate a curve and it crashed into a power pole, causing it to burst into flames as it overturned in the air, according to the CHP. Three of the four teens in the car were trapped inside and died.
Hernandez’s father, Albert, said he never had problems with his son drinking and was surprised to hear he had alcohol in his system that night.
“Being that young, it’s kind of hard to imagine,” he said. “We never noticed him drinking or doing any kind of drugs.”
Limas’ mother, Karin Ordonez, was glad to hear her son’s test was negative for drugs and alcohol and said he had taken a drug test the Friday before he died and it also was negative.
“I’m very proud of him, I knew it would be,” she said. “He was getting out of (trouble) and he wanted to be different. It was just a bad ending to a bad choice.”
CHP investigators believe Limas may have fled from police because he thought he could be sent to the California Youth Authority for previous criminal violations or as a possible way to join a gang, Mayes said. Limas’ family strongly disagrees with the CHP’s assessment.
The 13-year-old survivor was severely injured but is in stable condition at Kaiser Permanente San Jose/Santa Teresa Medical Center, Mayes said. She was thrown through the windshield of the car and suffered a fractured vertebrae, facial lacerations, a collapsed lung and burns to one side of her body.
She could be charged with possession of stolen property or vehicle theft, and when officers finish their investigation within the next couple months they could recommend charges, Mayes said.
“It will be incumbent on the DA’s office to decide if they’re going to do it,” she said.
Assorted diamond jewelry was also reported stolen by the Hollister resident whose Jaguar the teens stole, but the CHP is unsure whether jewelry found in the car is the same jewelry reported stolen from the residence, Mayes said.
A memorial service will be held in honor of the teens at the Seventh-Day Adventist Church at 1:30pm on Sunday and is open to the public. There will be an open microphone, singing and slide shows, Ordonez said.
The church is located at 2121 Sunnyslope Road in Hollister.
“It will be very to the point,” she said. “There will be pictures of the car, but it will be beautiful.”
Erin Musgrave covers public safety for the Free Lance. Reach her at 637-5566, ext. 336 or [email protected]
