Hollister
– A Hollister woman was arrested for vehicular manslaughter and
drunken driving after a single-vehicle crash on Highway 1 early
Monday that killed her 4-year-old daughter and injured seven other
people.
Hollister – A Hollister woman was arrested for vehicular manslaughter and drunken driving after a single-vehicle crash on Highway 1 early Monday that killed her 4-year-old daughter and injured seven other people.
Antoinette Van-essa Soliz, 25, of Hollister, was arrested by the California Highway Patrol on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and eight felony charges of drunken driving, said Officer Grant Boles, Santa Cruz area CHP public information officer. Additional charges against Soliz may be pending, Boles said.
The CHP is still investigating the crash and has not released the names of the victims, Boles said.
At the time of the 1:20am wreck, Soliz’s 2004 Chevrolet Tahoe was crowded with nine other passengers, three of whom were ejected from the vehicle during the crash.
Seven of the vehicle’s occupants were children, ranging in age from 1 to 15, Boles said, including Soliz’s 8-year-old and 10-year-old sons.
The relationship between the other passengers is not yet known, Boles said.
Soliz has been cited in the past for driving offenses that placed children in danger. She pleaded guilty to a 2001 charge of not using child passenger restraints, according to San Benito County Superior Court documents.
Soliz was northbound on Highway 1 when she lost control of her sport utility vehicle about 10 miles south of Santa Cruz, according to the CHP.
The vehicle slammed into the center guardrail and rolled over numerous times, according to the CHP.
Soliz was found to be under the influence of alcohol at the scene of the crash, according to the CHP.
Boles said he did not know where the occupants of the vehicle were headed or where they had been. He said investigators had not yet determined whether alcohol was being consumed in the vehicle.
“It’s still early in the investigation,” Boles said. “We’re getting asked that a lot and that’s exactly what we want to know. What were they doing? Where were they going?”
The CHP has yet to determine which occupants were wearing seat belts, Boles said. He said it was “safe to say not everyone was.”
Soliz’s 8-year-old son was the only person the CHP could confirm was ejected from the vehicle during the crash, Boles said.
Highway 1 was closed for approximately four hours while the CHP investigated the crash and four helicopters landed to take victims to hospitals, Boles said.
Soliz’ daughter was flown by helicopter to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, where she died, according to the Santa Cruz County coroner’s office.
An unidentified Gilroy man, a 23-year-old Gilroy woman, Soliz’s two sons, a 3-year-old Gilroy girl and a 2-year-old Gilroy girl were flown by helicopter to Stanford Medical Center with major injuries, Boles said.
The Gilroy man and 23-year-old Gilroy woman were in critical condition Monday night, Boles said.
An unidentified 15-year-old girl was taken by ambulance to Watsonville Community Hospital with severe injuries, Boles said.
A 1-year-old Gilroy girl was not injured in the crash, Boles said.
Soliz was scheduled to appear in San Benito County Superior Court today on two misdemeanor domestic violence charges, according to court documents.
The charges stem from a May domestic violence incident in which she allegedly pushed a man and a June incident in which she allegedly slapped a man twice in the face, according to Officer Rosie Betanio, a spokeswoman for the Hollister Police Department.
Soliz was released Monday afternoon from the Santa Cruz County Jail on $50,000 bail, according to jail personnel.
If convicted of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, Soliz could face up to 10 years in state prison, according to the California Penal Code.
Michael Van Cassell covers public safety for the Free Lance. He can be reached at 831-637-5566 ext. 335 or mv*********@fr***********.com.
