Man Charged After DWI, Reckless Driving Kills 3 in Orange County Crash

[evrheel]

Man Charged After DWI, Reckless Driving Kills 3 in Orange County Crash - Chapelboro.com

A man is charged with habitual impaired driving and three counts of second degree murder after a fatal crash on Saturday in Orange County.

chapelboro.com

A three-car crash north of Hillsborough on Saturday afternoon killed three people and injured a fourth, with law enforcement charging a man with an extensive history of drunk driving convictions for the incident.

Reports of a crash came around 3 p.m. along North Carolina Highway 57 near Phelps Road. The Orange County Sheriff’s Office shared on Facebook Saturday that its deputies were assisting with the response and a closure between Phelps Road and Rocky Lane was to last for an “extended” period, which was ultimately four hours.

The driver charged in the case is 33-year-old Carlos Gerardo Gonzalez-Mejia, a Person County resident, who made his first court appearance on Monday morning. During that, prosecutors presented facts that included witnesses seeing Gonzalez-Mejia’s vehicle traveling northbound at an “excessive rate of speed” and potentially more than 100 mph when he illegally passed a vehicle on the highway. After re-entering the lane, Gonzalez-Mejia rear-ended a car and sent that vehicle into the opposite lane — where it was t-boned by a vehicle headed south.

When law enforcement encountered Gonzalez-Mejia after the crash, the prosecution reported in the virtual hearing, Gonzalez-Mejia smelled strongly of alcohol and had “so many open containers that [law enforcement] did not try to count.” At the time, he admitted to drinking and driving.

Orange County prosecutors said as a result of the crash, 45-year-old Bertha Alicia Vacio-Moreno and two passengers — a 14-year-old and a 7-year-old — of the vehicle struck by Gonzalez-Mejia died. The driver of the third vehicle, a 74-year-old man from Hurdle Mills, also suffered life-threatening injuries from the crash and was transported to Duke Hospitals.

A Farewell for Homero's Mother and Sisters​

Donate to A Farewell for Homero's Mother and Sisters, organized by Lorena Vacio

We are devastated to share that on Saturday, December 21, 2024, Homero Lopez’s… Lorena Vacio needs your support for A Farewell for Homero's Mother and Sisters

www.gofundme.com

We are devastated to share that on Saturday, December 21, 2024, Homero Lopez’s mother, Bertha Vacio Moreno, and his two younger sisters were tragically killed in a fatal car accident in Hillsborough, NC. As we navigate this challenging time, they are faced with unexpected funeral and burial costs that the family is struggling to cover.

 

[TitanNC]

So incredibly sad. I just can’t even imagine what everyone involved is going through right now….terrible.

 

[OGtruthhurts]

The only heaven and hell is on earth

 

[ZZLPHeels]

The drunks always survive.