California Driver Charged For Suspected DUI Crash That Killed Pregnant Woman

A 40-year-old California driver was charged with murder after her vehicle hit a pregnant woman Tuesday, killing her.

The driver, Courtney Pandolfi, of Garden Grove was charged with one felony count of driving under the influence of drugs causing injury, one felony count of murder and one misdemeanor count of driving on a suspended license. She was being held against $3 million bail and will face a maximum sentence of life if convicted on all charges, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

Prosecutors said Pandolfi was behind the wheel of an SUV which veered onto a sidewalk in Anaheim and struck eight-month pregnant Yesenia Aguilar, who was walking alongside her husband. Her baby daughter was delivered through an emergency c-section after the crash and was still hospitalized. Aguilar’s husband, James Alvarez, told KCBS-TV the girl, Adalyn Rose, was stabilized and could recognize his voice Thursday.

"This is beyond shocking and it is absolutely reprehensible. There is no reason why a 23-year-old mother is dead and her daughter will grow up without ever seeing her mother’s smile or hearing her voice," Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in the statement.

Prosecutors noted Pandolfi has a history of driving under influence (DUI). She was convicted of driving under the influence of drugs in 2018, 2015, and in 2016, according to the statement.

"This was 100% preventable. This woman knew the consequences of driving under the influence and she did it anyway. As a member of the State Assembly, I authored the Steve Ambriz Act to be able to charge impaired drivers with murder. The ultimate goal is to prevent drivers from getting behind the wheel of a vehicle while impaired and causing these senseless deaths because they understand the consequences of being charged with murder and a life sentence. This was not an accident. It was a choice – and it was a deadly one," Spitzer said.

"I wish I could turn back time, even switch places," Alvarez told U.S. News. "She (his wife) did not deserve this for something so, like, irresponsible, so inconsiderate, and I just hope justice will happen."