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Alleged DUI driver charged with murder for deadly North Hollywood crash that killed two pedestrians

By
Dean Fioresi
Web Producer, CBS Los Angeles
Dean Fioresi is a web producer for CBS Los Angeles. He covers breaking news throughout Southern California. When he's not writing about local events, he enjoys focusing on sports and entertainment.
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Dean Fioresi

/ CBS LA

The alleged drunk driver who killed two pedestrians in North Hollywood over the weekend was charged with murder on Tuesday by the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office. 

The crash happened on Sunday at around 2:30 a.m. on Colfax Avenue, just north of Calvert Street, Los Angeles Police Department officers said at the time. Police said that the driver, 32-year-old Vidal Cruz Jr. of Pacoima, was traveling at an unsafe speed while driving northbound on Colfax when he collided with two people who had just gotten out of a car parked on the side of the street. 

Cruz collided with the victim's car and several other vehicles parked on the street before veering into a home and coming to a stop in the driveway, .

The victims have since been identified as 35-year-old El Monte man Nefi Lopez Gutierrez and 50-year-old North Hollywood woman Azusena Gonzalez.

He was arrested at the scene on suspicion of two counts of murder and police said that he was under the influence of alcohol when the crash happened. 

"This is an outrageous and preventable loss of two lives," said a statement from Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman. "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 during his first court appearance on Tuesday. He is due back in court for a preliminary hearing on May 27 and was ordered to remain behind bars in lieu of $4 million bail. 

If convicted as charged, Cruz faces up to life in state prison.

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