Student, 20, Gets Probation in Crash That Killed 2 Friends

During an emotional court hearing Tuesday, a 20-year-old Oxnard College student was sentenced to probation and community service for causing a crash last year that killed two of her friends.

Sopheak “Sophie” Riem dabbed tears from her eyes and smiled as she left the courtroom. About two dozen supporters, including her parents, had clapped loudly in court after Riem was spared jail time.

Riem said she was thankful for the support.

She was ordered to spend three years on supervised probation and perform 200 hours of community service.

“It’s a tragic thing that has happened,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Anita Patel, “but I think under the circumstances I agree with the court’s decision.”

Although Superior Court Judge Edward Brodie could have ordered Riem to serve two years in state prison, he said he believed she did not intend to injure anyone on the day of the crash.

Brodie said that 90% of the population fails to pay attention while driving, and that even on his way to court on Tuesday he had watched a woman run a red light in front of him.

“You simply lost control of your car,” the judge said. “It’s a tragic end to something that probably shouldn’t have been.”

Deputy Public Defender Todd Howeth, choking back tears, said dozens of friends, teachers and other supporters had written letters commenting on Riem’s honesty, potential and remorse.

“There is not going to be a day she doesn’t think about the friends she lost,” Howeth said, pausing to compose himself.

Riem lives with her parents in Oxnard and plans to attend USC, where she wants to major in communication.

Late last month, Riem pleaded no contest to charges of vehicular manslaughter stemming from the crash on June 11, 2001, on the Ventura Freeway.

Riem and two friends were headed to a friend’s high school graduation ceremony in Ventura. Authorities believe Riem was speeding and made an unsafe lane change near Johnson Drive that caused her to lose control of her car.

It hit a guardrail, skidded off the freeway and landed upside down on nearby railroad tracks, killing Ana Rosa Uribe, 17, a student at El Camino High School in Ventura.

The other passenger, Lea Casillas, 16, a standout softball player at Buena High School in Ventura, died later the same day at a local hospital.

Riem spent a week in the hospital with a fractured collarbone and punctured organs. All three were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash.

The families of Uribe and Casillas have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the state, alleging it failed to maintain the guardrail. A trial in that case is scheduled for Feb. 24.