A teen driver has been arrested in connection to a fatal crash on Highway 101 in Ventura that happened over the weekend.
The Ventura County Star reported on its website that the California Highway Patrol responded to the scene of a crash that happened in the northbound lanes of the 101 Freeway just north of Telephone Road at approximately 2:00 a.m.
Officials say that the driver,19-year-old Jorge Angel Perez, of Compton, was driving his 2007 Mustang northbound on the highway at a high rate of speed. As he approached the interchange at US Highway 126, Perez had to swerve to avoid colliding with a slower moving vehicle. Perez lost control, and his car went off the highway and down an embankment in a rollover crash.
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Three passengers were inside the vehicle with Perez at the time. A 21-year-old male passenger was thrown from the car. They had not been wearing a seatbelt at the time. CHP officers responding to the accident pronounced the passenger dead at the scene. His identity has been withheld pending notification of family members.
The two other passengers, along with Perez had been wearing their seatbelts. Paramedics transported the 18-year-old and 19-year-old passenger to Ventura County Medical Center and were listed with moderate injuries at the time of the report.
Perez suffered only minor injuries and had a blood-alcohol level greater than the legal limit of 0.08 percent. He was arrested at the scene by CHP officers on the charges of gross vehicular manslaughter and suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury.
Perez was being held on bond. He was released on Sunday. His trial in a Ventura County Superior Court is scheduled for Friday, July 31st.
The accident is currently under investigation. The California Highway Patrol is asking anyone who may have witnessed the crash or if they have any further information to contact their Ventura Office at (805) 662-2640.
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