Woman accused in fatal DUI crash back in jail after judge grants temporary release

A woman accused of a deadly DUI crash is back behind bars Sunday after she was granted a temporary release by an El Dorado County judge. Cheyanne Wright, charged with murder in a DUI crash, was granted 48 hours of release to visit a sick relative. She is charged with murder in a crash Judge Michael McLaughlin approved Wright’s temporary release. She is accused of causing a DUI crash in May 2025 in El Dorado Hills that killed 84-year-old Joan Allison. Wright also faces child abuse charges because she had two young children in her car at the time of the crash. El Dorado County Chief Probation Officer Kaci L. Smith confirmed to KCRA3 that Wright was fitted with an ankle monitor. She returned to jail Sunday in Placerville, according to jail records. “Probation is taking extra steps, outside of our normal operating protocols, to manually monitor this case for the next 48 hours,” Smith said. “Additionally, our team is putting together a package of information to go to the police department in the jurisdiction where Ms. Wright was granted permission.”Judge McLaughlin is the same judge who did not order Carl Cacconie into custody last summer after a jury convicted him of child sex crimes. Cacconie was supposed to return a month later to learn his sentence of up to 18 years. Instead, Cacconie is accused of faking his own death and evaded authorities for nearly 10 months before the FBI arrested him earlier this month in Scottsdale, Arizona. Cacconie is scheduled to appear before Judge McLaughlin on Monday.See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel