My News LA reports that on Thursday, September 9. 2021, an Orange County jury convicted 28-year-old Guadalupe Berenice Zamora of manslaughter and driving under the influence of alcohol.
The charges were filed against Zamora for her role in the death of two women and the injury of a third person in a crash that happened on February 4, 2017.
Court records indicate that at approximately 2:40 a.m. that morning, Zamora was driving her 2015 Honda Civic when she blew through a red light at the intersection of La Palma Avenue and Walker Street. Zamora’s Honda collided with a 1996 Honda Civic.
The driver of the second Honda suffered severe injuries, which included the loss of his spleen, broken ribs, and a dislocated shoulder. An 81-year-old woman and a 47-year-old woman were declared dead at the scene of the crash.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office initially charged Zamora with two felony counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence in addition to the DUI charges. The jury rejected these charges and decided on two counts of vehicular manslaughter and DUI with enhanced sentencing for one count of inflicting significant bodily injury to the driver who survived the crash.
Zamora, who was out on bond, was remanded to jail by Orange County Judge Scott Steiner until her sentencing that has been scheduled for November 5, 2021.
Before the crash, Zamora had no prior arrests or citations except for having made an illegal U-turn.
Judge Steiner described the situation as being “The ultimate sad case.”
