By Skylar Smith
Published: October 26, 2009
Categorized in | Campus News, Local News
By Skylar Smith
Daily Titan Staff Writer
Two San Bernardino women were killed Monday when an alleged drunk driver crashed into their Chevy Silverado head-on while driving west in the eastbound lane of the 91 freeway.
Jessica Shekell, 22, has been released on bond as of 6:04 p.m. Dec. 15, 2009. Her pre-trail hearing is set for Feb. 26, 2010. Photo courtesy of the Orange County District Attorney's Office
The driver of the Silverado, Sally Miguel, 44, was driving east bound in the FasTrak Express lane when Jessica Shekell, 21, a Fullerton resident and Cal State Fullerton freshman transfer majoring in sociology, collided head-on with her 2003 Toyota Tundra. Shekell was sent to UCI Medical Center.
Also riding in the Silverado was Patricia Miguel, 30, sister to Sally Miguel, who sat in the passenger seat while nieces Sara Miguel, 11, and Mary Miguel, 15 sat in the backseats. Sally Miguel died on the scene and Patricia died shortly after arriving at the hospital.
The two nieces, Sara who received major injuries, and Mary who received moderate injuries, are currently being held at separate hospitals, one of them being UCI Medical Center.
John Murray, head of media relations at UCI Medical Center, said Shekell is currently in “fair condition” and that one of the Miguel girls is also at the hospital, however because they are both juveniles he cannot say which girl.
The accident occurred at 3:02 a.m. right after a report came in to the California Highway Patrol about a driver going the wrong way at 2:55 a.m. “We had a unit right in that area,” said Officer Denise Quesada. “Our units were there literally almost as the collision occurred.”
“The 911 caller called it in at Imperial Highway,” Quesada said, she added that the officer arrived on the freeway at Kramer Avenue. “Our units were coming to the area when, I don’t know if he actually witnessed or heard it or came upon the aftermath, but he looked over the radio at 3:02 and there was a head-on collision.”
Shekell, who may have had alcohol in her system, was driving west on the eastbound side of the 91 freeway when she collided with Miguel’s truck around Lakeview Ave. According to the California Highway Patrol, the Miguel family was driving back from a night at Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park to their home in San Bernardino.
“The passengers of the (Silverado) were not wearing seat belts so therefore they sustained major injuries, but everyone stayed within the vehicle. I don’t believe anyone was ejected,” Quesada said.
Shekell, who graduated from Cabrillo High School in Lompoc Calif., before moving to Fullerton played on the school’s volleyball team. She attended Cuesta College and Fullerton College before transferring to CSUF this semester.
Amanda Murray, a long-time friend from Lompoc said, “We’ve been to a couple of parties together but we always had a designated driver. She is responsible.”
Katie Pendleton, Shekell’s friend since kindergarten, stated that Shekell is familiar with the dangers of reckless driving as two of her high school friends, Brice Fabing and Mikey Terrones, died in a Halloween accident in 2005 when they were speeding and crashed at a dead end.
The CHP are currently investigating Shekell for possibly driving under the influence and depending on the results, the District Attorney can press charges, Quesada said. “Obviously there could be a DUI,” Quesada added. Based on the history and evidence gathered during the investigation process, Shekell could be facing charges such as manslaughter or vehicular manslaughter.
Kaitlin Paiz, Patrick Cowles, and Portia Bode contributed to this article.
Shekell has been charged, find out about her counts here.
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Maria: It is a real consideration; the race theory.
For those who care,I went on a mission: research a lot of drunk driving w/fatalities; most especially head on collisions on the wrong side of the road…answer…DRUNK DRIVING. And most often the person driving the wrong way, who is drunk, is USUALLY charged pretty swiftly. And I’ve not seen any BAC info held out so long.
This case is VERY curious…if Jessica is innocent, then we all played detective for practice, but if she is guilty; then I feel it proves, regardless of RACE, we want justice for the victims! This is not about hating on anyone, this is about human nature, curiosity, right & wrong and the need to have answers for things that simply cannot be brushed away based on biased opinion that someone “is nice and responsible”.
Accountability is key in all walks of life. There is no good way for this to end regardless, but if an injustice has been forced upon the Miguels, I strongly believe (as SO MANY DO), that justice should be swift, and NO LAWYER should protect the guilty. Though in America, with the right representation, clearly, a lot can be kept from the public eye.
So much for the Public Information Act, perhaps it should be called, ‘How Much Money Can You Spend to Keep the Facts Censored & Repressed Act’.
CORRECTION:
SINCE an injustice has been forced upon the Miguels! My Bad!
Angela says:
November 19, 2009 at 6:53 pm
Maria: It is a real consideration; the race theory.
For those who care,I went on a mission: research a lot of drunk driving w/fatalities; most especially head on collisions on the wrong side of the road…answer…DRUNK DRIVING. And most often the person driving the wrong way, who is drunk, is USUALLY charged pretty swiftly. And I’ve not seen any BAC info held out so long.
No… No it is not. Unless you know the facts of the case (which clearly no one in the general public knows), don’t be so quick to play the race card. Unless, of course, you’re an idiot. In which case carry on.
Also, since when does using Google qualify as a mission?
Maria: Wow, you assume a lot and you know what that means! I’m a writer, I do more than guess and certainly would never use only one search engine.
And yes. let’s just ALL assume that race is never an issue is it? I mean, that would never happen here!!!!!!!!!!!
I think Maria has perhaps, just proven herself to connected to the Shekells…
AND YES, WE KNOW PLENTY OF FACTS:
1.WRONG WAY DRIVER AT 3AM (GO ASK YOUR LOCAL POLICE OFFICERS AND TROOPERS; I HAPPEN TO KNOW A LOT OF THEM) USUALLY MEANS DRUNK DRIVER!
2. TWO WOMEN ARE DEAD.
3. TWO CHILDREN (ONE POTENTIALLY PERMANENTLY BRAIN DAMAGED) WERE INJURED.
4. AND LET’S NOT FORGET ABOUT ALL THE DAMNING PICTURES OF A CERTAIN YOUNG LADY HOLDING UP MANY, MANY DRINKS AND PROUDLY DISPLAYING AN OPENNESS ABOUT DRINKING AND DRIVING!
So Maria, I believe it is you that NEEDS to check herself and her facts!
“Wow, you assume a lot and you know what that means! I’m a writer, I do more than guess and certainly would never use only one search engine.”
“I think Maria has perhaps, just proven herself to connected to the Shekells…”
“And yes. let’s just ALL assume that race is never an issue is it? I mean, that would never happen here!!!!!!!!!!!”
“So Maria, I believe it is you that NEEDS to check herself and her facts!”
…
Clearly you’ve done much research on the subject and would never resort to jumping to conclusions. I stand corrected.
By the way, I’m not sure what being a writer has to do with using more than one search engine, but I believe you have a strong legal case against your English teachers.
Maria: Listen, I’ve been on this board for quite a while. I’ve been around the block with a lot of people here.
You can hate on anyone, jump to conclusions, put people down and otherwise play the devils advocate. But it doesn’t change the fact, the people who have been on this board long before you showed up all want one thing: ANSWERS.
I am one of those people. Maria, I don’t want to get into a “shoving match” with you. I was merely supporting another posters point of view. You said she shouldn’t play the race card and I suggested that that COULD be a factor…I never said it was. You seem very hostile.
We are all aware that we do not know all the facts or have all the answers, however, we do have a right, based on the law, to know. Jessica was on public roads and could have killed anyone…even people you know and love…that’s the whole point here. We all feel pretty vulnerable based on the fact INNOCENT people were killed.
Some people are here because that want to absorb the facts in hopes that it never happens to them or their children, some people are here wanting justice exacted, and some of us are here (like myself) because we suffered great loss like the Miguels and want to know if their deaths could have been prevented.
I don’t want to fight you…I’m here like everyone else. You have a right to shout your opinion, but you don’t have to attack.
Maria sounds crazy….why so angry Maria? Did you forget to take ur meds?
why are you guys still on this? i mean two weeks ago a 20 year old guy did this same exact thing wrong way on the highway and killed two people i dont see guys making a big deal about that?
Friend, that guy is in jail for what he did. The real shame is his DUI 8 days prior to his killing those innocent people!
If Jessica was not DUI, I will be surprised, but who knows…I hate that ANY families ever have to deal with this kind of tragedy.
To Friend, why are we still on this? Cause your friend killed 2 people and will not rest until justice is served and see that she is sent to prison to live in a 5×9 cell for the next 10 – 15 years.
This isn’t just going to go away, friend.
Also, this story is about Jessica, not any of the MANY other head on collisions, that is why we are talking about it here.
I agree with Maria, I don’t think the race card should be pulled. I mean I suppose its okay to guess that would be a factor, but the Gallo case is different because of many things NOT involving race. He ran, and was caught shortly after wards, he had priors, and he was not hospitalized therefore needing blood samples to prove his level of intoxication. and was not in the hospital for weeks. As well as the nice quote of “RUN BITCH” to his passenger after he totaled a car.
I think that is enough to show the difference in the CASE not the RACE. Lol, Sorry, but you gotta love the rhyming.
Oh and I think it would probably have more to do with the fact he killed a “celebrity” more than the fact the people were white.
so true..if it wasn’t an Angel pitcher it would not have gotten as much attention.
No one said race was a factor, it was mentioned. No more outrageous than people repeatadly stating that Jessica was drunk with out the proof of the BAC. They are both conjecture at this point.
Why is it more easy to assume Jessica was drunk, than it is to assume race could be a factor? When technically they are equal shows here.
I agree however, race should never be a factor in deciding criminal charges. Though it has happened so many times, more than we will ever truly know! A horrible and sad fact.
Hopefully “the race factor” will die out. Society has come a long way… still much more to go, but at least it slowly improves… I guess that’s why I don’t like it when people bring up race in cases, because it shows how far the world is behind in common sense.
“Gallo was charged what a couple weeks later? Why is this case taking so long? Hmmm is it racial bias? Gallo killed 3 white people. Shekell killed 2 latinos.”
I think the reason this topic got a little out of hand is the way it was brought up… This poster wasn’t really saying this “COULD” be because of race. I read it as more of a fact in this person’s mind. Very sarcastic.
I agree, and I do stand corrected. Thanks Okaynow for pointing that out!!
I think the reason I could identify that as a possibilty is I recently moved to CO from AL; and in AL racism is SHOVED down your throat.
I know it’s off topic, but believe me, racism is alive and well, but more so in cultures of people who have been taught hatred based skin color, name or religion!
I do believe that equality has improved geatly in the last decade, but we do have a long way to go!
The hardcore racism was shocking to say the least and very scary.
i Just Wanna Say My Family THANK GOD is okay. just jessica sheckell Destroyed Our Family And i Wanna Thank All Of You Guys for Praying For Us And Seeing The Truth AbouT Drunk Drivers Thank You.
Miguel Family Member…I AM SO GLAD YOUR YOUNG ONES ARE OKAY!