Toxicology delays stall charges for years in deadly Renton DUI crash

The man accused of driving under the influence of drugs and killing a woman in a high-speed crash in Renton in 2023 has now been charged with vehicular homicide after more than two years of delays in toxicology testing. Robert Anthony Trevino, 22, was booked into jail overnight after a warrant was issued for his arrest last month. The fatal crash happened on Dec. 19, 2023 when Trevino's car crossed the center line on NE 3rd St and slammed head-on into a Renton School District bus near 22nd Ave NE. RELATED | 1 dead, 2 injured after sedan crashes into school bus in Renton The crash killed 20-year-old Ashley O'Neal and injured another passenger in Trevino's car. Investigators obtained video of the crash from a Tesla that was on the road when it happened. According to investigators, Trevino was traveling at 70mph before the crash, on a road a speed limit of 35mph. Police immediately suspected Trevino was under the influence of drugs and drew his blood at the scene. "Officers noted seeing drug paraphernalia and items associated with drug usage," the police report states. "These items included aluminum foil, lighters, mini-torches, glassine baggies, and hypodermic needles." Investigators sent the blood samples to the Washington State Toxicology Lab for testing. After a year, the results came back as negative for alcohol, but the lab had not tested for drugs. "We then had to send it back for a retest, specifically for presence of narcotics," Renton police detective Kevin Lane told KOMO News. "That took another year to get that result back. There was never any explanation as to why there was an expanded time." RELATED | Washington State Patrol opens toxicology lab to help improve backlog issues The blood results came back in February of this year, indicating the presence of meth and fentanyl. Prosecutors charged Trevino on April 30 with one count of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular assault. A warrant was issued for his arrest, and 22-year-old Trevino was taken into custody, the RPD said in a Facebook post Thursday. He was booked into the Maleng Regional Justice Center in Kent, where he is currently being held on $100,000 bail. RELATED | Washington law aims to cut toxicology lab delays in DUI cases, clear months-long backlog The backlog for blood test results has been well documented in Washington, with cases like this taking years to get results back. "It's incredibly frustrating," Lane said. "We have what we need to file the charges and it's outside of our control. We just have to sit there and wait for those things to come in."