A man with four previous DUI charges just picked up a fifth in Santa Rosa, and this one took the life of a 31-year-old mother who worked as a juvenile corrections officer.

It is bad enough for those charged with driving under the influence (DUI), but obviously the criminal justice system will come down on you even harder when you kill a law enforcement officer in the crash you allegedly caused while driving intoxicated. And it is even much worse if you already had four previous DUIs on your record. But that is now the case for 68-year-old Nhan Van Nguyen, whom KTVU reports has been charged with DUI and manslaughter in a crash that killed 31-year-old Jessica Avila Munoz, a sworn Sonoma County Probation Department officer.


The crash was this past Friday afternoon, as KTVU noted at the time. Nguyen allegedly ran a red light while intoxicated at about 1:35 pm, causing a three-vehicle crash at Lombardi Court and Sebastopol Road in Santa Rosa. The victim Munoz was left unconscious and trapped inside her vehicle, and died shortly after being transported to the hospital.

According to KTVU, Munoz was on  her way to pick up her 13-year-old daughter from school.


And yes, the 68-year-old Nguyen had four previous DUI charges, with a driver’s license that had previously been suspended, and was expired at the time of the crash. Nguyen is currently being held at the Sonoma County Jail with no bail, and has been charged with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, DUI, and driving without a valid license.


“Jessica was a dedicated and caring single mother, who was known as full of life. She was proud to serve as a peace officer for the Sonoma County Probation Department in Juvenile Hall and excited to begin her career in Criminal Justice,” says a statement from the Peace Officers Research Association of California. “Jessica was born and raised in Sonoma County, attended Santa Rosa Junior College and Sonoma State University, where she earned a degree in Psychology and Administration of Justice. She became a first-generation college graduate in her family.”


Munoz is survived by her 13-year old daughter, a younger sister, and her mother. There is a GoFundMe to help the family with funeral expenses.  

Related: Mother of One Who Was Dispatcher for the Alameda County Sheriff's Office Killed By Alleged Drunk Driver [SFist]

Image via GoFundMe