Accused wrong-way driver in fatal 60 Freeway crash due in court

A Fontana woman accused of driving the wrong way on two freeways while drunk and causing a crash that killed six people is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday on six counts of murder.

Olivia Carolee Culbreath, 21, is accused of causing the early morning crash on Feb. 9 by driving a red Chevrolet Camaro the wrong direction on the 60 Freeway in Diamond Bar before smashing into a Ford Explorer.

At least 17 people reported seeing a woman driving the wrong way on the 57 and 60 freeways in the minutes before the deadly crash, authorities said. Police said witnesses told them the car was driven by Culbreath and appeared to be going more than 100 mph.

Culbreath and Joel Cortez, the driver of a third vehicle caught in the crash, were the only survivors. Four family members in the Ford Explorer were killed. They were identified as Gregorio Mejia-Martinez, 47; Leticia Ibarra, 42; Jessica Jasmine Mejia, 20, and Ester Delgado, 80.

Culbreath’s passengers -- her sister Maya, 24, and a friend, Kristin Melissa Young, 21 -- were also killed.

Culbreath suffered a broken femur and ruptured bladder in the crash, officials said. She was transferred to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Twin Towers jail after recovering from her injuries at a hospital.

She is being held in lieu of $6-million bail.

At 17, Culbreath was convicted of drunk driving in San Bernardino County, California Department of Motor Vehicles officials said. State records also show that she was cited for traffic violations at least two other times.

If convicted of the murder charges, Culbreath would face a maximum sentence of life in state prison, according to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.