Victims in fatal North Hollywood crash identified; driver charged with murder

A 32-year-old Pacoima man accused of driving under the influence has been charged with two counts of murder in connection with a deadly crash in North Hollywood over the weekend. The violent April 12 collision occurred just before 2:30 a.m. in the 6100 block of Colfax Avenue, just north of Calvert, according to the Los Angeles Police Department’s Valley Traffic Division. Investigators allege that Vidal Cruz Jr., behind the wheel of a gray Acura traveling northbound at an unsafe speed, struck an idling Toyota Camry carrying five people, including Nefi Lopez Gutierrez, 35, of El Monte, and Azusena Gonzalez, 50, of North Hollywood. The two victims were exiting the vehicle at the time of the crash. The impact sent both victims into the roadway. Gutierrez was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics with the Los Angeles Fire Department. Gonzalez was rushed to a hospital by ambulance, where she later died from her injuries. The other three occupants of the Camry suffered minor injuries. Investigators said Cruz continued driving northeast before entering a private driveway, where he crashed into an unoccupied parked vehicle and a house. No one inside the residence was injured, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office. “This is an outrageous and preventable loss of two lives,” Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a news release. “This defendant is accused of getting behind the wheel drunk, speeding through a neighborhood and killing two people. That kind of reckless disregard for human life demands accountability, and we will pursue it to the fullest extent of the law.” Cruz pleaded not guilty to both counts of murder on Tuesday and is scheduled to appear in court on May 27. Bail was set at $4 million. If convicted as charged, Cruz faces life in state prison.