“Don’t Drink and Drive.” “Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over.” These are just some of the campaigns that various jurisdictions across the country have used in order to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving. The public perhaps holds police officers and other public servants to a higher standard than the general public, so when they are caught driving while intoxicated, the news makes headlines. If they care caught driving while intoxicated, they are expected to be treated like any other member of society. It is no different for when a DUI results in murder charges for a Los Angeles police officer. KTLA reports on an officer pleading not guilty to murder and other charges.
27-year-old Edgar Verduzco is facing charges of murder and vehicular manslaughter for his role in a September 26, 2017 crash that claimed three lives.
Verduzco had allegedly been drinking before the incident. He also posted a 10-second video to his Instagram account. The video depicted a cartoon character driving a car with the tag #don’tdrinkanddrive.
About three hours later, the off-duty Los Angeles Police officer crashed into another vehicle, causing it to erupt into flames. All people inside the other vehicle – a teenager along with his mother and father – died in the crash. They were identified as 19-year-old Oscar Davila and his parents, Mario and Maribel.
Prosecutors filed several charges against Verduzco for the accident, including murder and other criminal charges.
On June 20th, Verduzco pleaded not guilty to the charges. If convicted, he faces a possibility of life in prison.
