Intoxicated woman with four children in car crashes into South L.A. home, killing 1, police say
A woman was driving intoxicated and with four children not wearing seat belts inside the car when she lost control and smashed into a house in South L.A., killing a young passenger, police said.
Erica Lynn Naranjo, 36, was released from the hospital and booked into county jail about 3:30 a.m. Monday on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter while driving under the influence in connection with the crash on East 93rd Street in Green Meadows, Sheriff’s Department records show.
For the record:
1:02 p.m. April 25, 2024This article says Naranjo was released from the hospital. As of July 20, she had not yet been released.
Authorities said that Naranjo was southbound on McKinley Avenue when she lost control of her beige sedan and crashed into a home on the southeast corner of 93rd Street about 5:45 p.m. Sunday.
Inside the car with Naranjo were a 7-year-old girl and three boys, ages 6 years, 4 years and 18 months, Los Angeles Fire Department officials said.
The girl, identified as Angelina Lynn Naranjo, died from her injuries. The boys were rushed to the hospital with critical injuries, police said. None were wearing seat belts when the crash occurred, police told KTLA.
“Seat belts certainly would’ve made a difference,” LAPD Sgt. Allan Rabina said. “Sometimes speed is such an overwhelming factor … at least seat belts would’ve minimized or mitigated the injuries.”
Los Angeles fire dispatchers received a series of 911 calls from witnesses beginning at 5:47 p.m. Sunday, after the sedan crashed through a white fence and smashed into a brick exterior wall of the house in the 700 block of East 93rd Street.
The driver was temporarily trapped in the wreckage, LAFD spokesman Brian Humphrey said. The 7-year-old girl was, “sadly, beyond our help,” Humphrey said. Rescuers pronounced her dead at the scene.
DMV records show Naranjo’s driver’s license expired in May. She is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail.
No one inside the home was injured.
Staff writer Jack Dolan contributed to this report.
For breaking California news, follow @JosephSerna on Twitter.
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