VISTA — A woman whose two children were struck and killed on a Vista freeway last June pleaded guilty last week to felony child endangerment and DUI charges.
Sandra Ortiz, 34, of Vista, entered her plea on Feb. 8 in Vista Superior Court. The remaining charges of gross vehicular manslaughter were dismissed, according to San Diego County District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Tanya Sierra.Â
Ortiz had pulled over to the side of state Route 78 on June 18, 2023, after a piece of luggage reportedly fell from her vehicle onto the freeway. Two of her children exited the car and entered the lanes of traffic to try to retrieve the luggage when they were struck and killed by an oncoming vehicle.Â
Ortiz and her four other children were in the car nearby when 10-year-old Alan and 16-year-old Amy were killed.Â
Ortiz was initially arrested on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter, child endangerment, and driving while intoxicated and placed in custody on $500,000 bail.Â
The DA’s Office alleged that she had a blood alcohol level of 0.14% after the crash (well over the 0.08 legal limit), lacked a valid driver’s license, and did not make any effort to stop the children from exiting the vehicle or get them out of the freeway.Â
She was released soon afterward with supervision but found herself back in jail the following month after violating multiple conditions of her release, including drinking alcohol and not charging her monitor.
According to San Diego County Sheriff’s records, Ortiz was not in custody as of her plea.Â
The plea deal reached last week did not include a stipulated sentence; however, Sierra said the charges come with a maximum of 10 years and eight months in prison.
A sentencing hearing has been scheduled for July 22. Â
The Public Defender’s Office, which assigned an attorney to Ortiz, did not respond to requests for comment.
