Drunk, pregnant woman from Clovis causes deadly HWY 41 crash, CHP says
MADERA COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- A south valley man is dead after a drunk driving crash in the Madera County foothills and police say the woman responsible should not have been behind the wheel.
The crash happened just before 10 p.m. Friday along Highway 41 near Road 200. Shortly after, police arrested a 23-year-old Clovis woman, who is pregnant -- and could now face murder charges.
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) says Candice Ooley from Clovis was driving a white Chevrolet Cruze when she caused the accident. A CHP official says Ooley, who is six months pregnant, was "highly intoxicated" and driving at a high speed when she crashed into the back of a Hummer H3.
Officers say the force from the accident caused the driver of the SUV to lose control, sending him and his three passengers down this embankment. Frederico Nunez Silva, 47, of Lemoore was a passenger in the SUV and died at the scene. The driver of the Hummer was airlifted to the hospital and his two female passengers were taken by ambulance -- after being pinned inside the vehicle for about an hour. Their injuries range from moderate to major.
Michael Womack drives down Highway 41 everyday for work. He admits the roads are windy but thinks this is not a matter of someone being caught off guard. He says it's a matter of someone driving irresponsibly.
"You gotta have people that are aware of everything that they are doing and when they're not aware of what they're doing, especially intoxicating, then it's not a good thing," said Womack.
Ooley, the pregnant woman who CHP says was driving under the influence, was evaluated at an area hospital and was later arrested for DUI and driving on a suspended license from a prior DUI conviction.
