Santa Cruz
– A judge ordered a Hollister woman to stand trial for the
drunken driving death of her daughter after hearing evidence Monday
that her blood-alcohol level was nearly three times the legal
limit.
Santa Cruz – A judge ordered a Hollister woman to stand trial for the drunken driving death of her daughter after hearing evidence Monday that her blood-alcohol level was nearly three times the legal limit.
Ariadne Symons, chief deputy district attorney of Santa Cruz County, said she is pleased that 26-year-old Antoinette Vanessa Soliz was bound over for trial and is confident in prosecuting her for vehicular manslaughter. Symons presented the court with photographs of the crash scene and called two California Highway Patrol officers to the witness stand Monday morning.
CHP officers determined Soliz’s blood-alcohol level was 0.22 after the crash, said Grant Boles, the public information officer for the Santa Cruz area office of the CHP. The legal blood-alcohol limit in California is 0.08.
Soliz’s 4-year-old daughter, Jasmine Arroyo, was killed in the crash in late January. Seven others were seriously injured.
Wesley Schroeder, Soliz’s attorney, said his client’s injuries from the crash did not reflect the deployment of the driver’s side airbag or the use of a seat belt.
“The issue in the case is driving,” Schroeder said. “Who was driving the vehicle?”
Schroeder said there may not be enough evidence to prove Soliz was behind the wheel.
The 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe authorities believe Soliz was driving is registered to Cassandra Gonzalez, a 23-year-old Gilroy woman who was also injured in the crash.
Soliz will be tried on 13 felony counts in connection with the crash, including vehicular manslaughter, five counts of child abuse and seven counts of causing great bodily injury. Soliz also faces one misdemeanor count of driving on a suspended license.
However, before proceeding to trial, Soliz is expected to enter a plea at an arraignment scheduled for April 9, Symons said.
Authorities say Soliz was intoxicated and behind the wheel of 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe when it slammed into the center guardrail 10 miles south of Santa Cruz on Highway 1 on Jan. 29. The vehicle was crowded with two other adults and seven children at the time of the crash, the CHP reported.
The vehicle rolled numerous times, ejecting and injuring Soliz’s sons, 10-year-old Andrew Arroyo and 8-year-old Matthew Arroyo, according to the CHP. Boles previously told the Free Lance that four of the children were not wearing seat belts, three of whom were Soliz’s.
Soliz faces up to 10 years in state prison if convicted of vehicular manslaughter, according to the California Penal Code. She is being held in the Santa Cruz County Jail in lieu of $1 million in bail.
Michael Van Cassell covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or [email protected].
