Authorities prosecuted an Orange County man on Wednesday for striking a family of five cyclists in Garden Grove when their blood alcohol content was almost three times the legal limit. Days after the crash, a father and kid are still unconscious.
The Orange County District Attorney’s Office said on Wednesday that Ceferino Ramos had been charged with DUI and hit-and-run due to his suspected involvement in the July 7 incident that resulted in injuries to a mother, father, and their three little children. Ramos is charged with three felonies in total.
On Sunday, at around 7 p.m., the crash occurred. Near Haster Street and Twintree Lane, Angel Ramirez and Angela Hernandez-Mejia were riding e-bikes with their 7-month-old daughter, 5-year-old son, and 6-year-old daughter.
Ramirez was towing a trailer with the other two kids, while Hernandez-Mejia was towing the baby behind her. According to officials, Ramos collided with all five of them at that point.
According to officials, a witness observed Ramos drive away after the collision. The witness pursued Ramos in her car until the police could arrive, then she contacted them. Upon arrival, the authorities discovered that Ramos’ blood alcohol level was 0.22, which is almost three times more than the 0.8 legal limit.
Since the collision, Ramirez and the couple’s 5-year-old kid have both been unconscious. While officials stated that Ramirez’s son does not exhibit any brain activity, the man himself sustained a cracked skull and a brain bleed. Following surgery, the older daughter’s condition is still critical.
Just one day after the collision, she turned seven. Hernandez-Mejia is expected to live, as is the couple’s younger daughter, who only had minor wounds.
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“Instead of blowing out her birthday candles, a little girl spent her seventh birthday in the hospital fighting for her life the day after being run over along with her entire family by a drunk driver,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer stated. “They were just riding their bikes, enjoying a hot summer day, and now that little girl, her brother, and their dad are just hoping to make it to her next birthday. This is a tragedy that should have never happened, but it did because of the selfish decision by a stranger to get behind the wheel drunk. We are praying for Angel and for their two children to make miraculous recoveries and to be able to celebrate many, many more birthdays the way birthdays should be celebrated and not in hospital beds.”
Ramos is charged with three felonies in addition to the original accusation of causing grievous bodily injury, paralysis, and brain damage. If found guilty, he may spend up to 11 years in prison; but, if any of the family members suffer more serious injuries, the charges might be enhanced.
