Authorities have identified a female passenger who died in a rear-end collision with a parked ambulance in Long Beach on Saturday, Oct. 29.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s office said she was 25-year-old Adelita Gonzalez of Long Beach.
Police believe the driver, 27-year-old Long Beach resident Christian Casillas, was intoxicated when the crash occurred. Casillas was speeding along an area of Shoreline Drive where it transitioned onto the 710 Freeway near Seventh Street when he collided with the back of an ambulance that was parked on the shoulder of the road just after 2 a.m., according to the Long Beach Police Department.
Nobody in the ambulance was hurt, but Gonzalez was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
Casillas, who also suffered injuries, was hospitalized before being arrested and booked on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and felony driving under the influence causing bodily injury, police said.
He’s been free on $100,000 bail since Monday, Oct. 30, inmate records show.
Gonzalez’s family, meanwhile, has created a GoFundMe to help with the cost of funeral expenses.
“I am so heartbroken to be writing this,” Gonzalez’s sister Alejandra wrote in the GoFundMe post.
She said Gonzalez “brought light” to every room she entered and always had a smile on her face.
“She was loved by her family and friends,” Gonzalez’s sister added. “She was beautiful inside and out, and she was truly the light to our family.”