Overview
- Both defendants appeared in a Los Angeles Superior Court on Tuesday for arraignment, which was continued to April 24 for a further hearing where pleas are expected.
- Prosecutors allege former CHP officer Angelo Rodriguez drove about 130 mph without lights or siren, rear-ended a Nissan, waited roughly three minutes without securing the scene, left to call dispatch without identifying himself as the driver, and returned to find the car ablaze.
- Iris Salmeron is accused of driving at more than 100 mph with a blood-alcohol level above the legal limit and crashing into the disabled Nissan, and she also faces two felony DUI counts.
- All four occupants of the Nissan — Juliana Hamori, Armand Del Campo, Jordan Partridge and Samantha Skocilic — were killed in the ensuing fire, with families saying texts and calls showed they were alive after the initial collision.
- Rodriguez and Salmeron face potential life sentences if convicted; prosecutors are seeking $8 million bail each, and the CHP says it fired Rodriguez and conducted a comprehensive investigation.