Wrong-way driver from Gardena kills 2 young women, himself in head-on crash
If you watched the morning news today, you saw coverage of a gruesome car crash on the Santa Ana Freeway in Commerce. A wrong-way driver crashed head-on into a right-way car, killing its driver and a female passenger, and seriously injuring two other young male passengers.The wrong-way driver also died.
It turns out the wrong-way driver was identified as Steven Quintero, 27, of Gardena. That's him on the right.
I called his house, but a family member had nothing to say when I asked why Quintero was driving the wrong direction.
The women killed were identified as Anaheim residents Arielle Rose Estremo, 20, who was driving, and Chauncy Alysse Reid, 17.
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Larry Altman has covered crime in the South Bay since 1990. He's seen it all - the missing model who turned up dead in the desert, the wives found dead in trunks, the high-school coaches who get a little too close to their players. He drives his young colleagues nuts with his "I remember when" stories. He welcomes your tips and observations about the present, and you can mix in a little Lakers basketball talk if you like.
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Denise Nix knew as young as grade school, when she spent every summer working on the camp newspaper, that she wanted to be a journalist. Denise has spent most of the last 12 years of her career in the courtroom. She joined the Daily Breeze in 2001, where she tracks and reports on hundreds of cases at every level of the justice system. And she's never, ever, seen a judge use a gavel.
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Chauncy was 20 years old!!!
You are correct. The initial information we received showed she was 17. Her correct birthday was 7/24/1987. She was 20. Sorry for the mistake.
Here is something that wasn't known until about 5 weeks after the accident when the toxicology report was released: Mr. Quintero's blood alcohol level was 0.19, nearly 2-1/2x the legal limit. He also tested positive for marijuana, and had a prior arrest in 2007 for possession in his vehicle. I'm sure his family had nothing to say, but Arielle's family does. Drinking and driving is dangerous and stupid. The lives of two young women were ended by this idiot and we will never be the same.