O.C. teen convicted of murder in drunk-driving crash
A teen driver was convicted today of murdering his 16-year-old friend after speeding over 100 mph -- while drunk and without a license -- and crashing into a utility pole.
Milad Moulayi, 18, of Santa Ana was the first juvenile in Orange County to be charged as an adult with murder in a drunken driving crash, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office. He was 17 at the time of the accident.
A jury found Moulayi guilty of one count of second-degree murder for being drunk behind the wheel and one misdemeanor count of driving without a license in the crash last year that killed Mackenzie Frazee. Moulayi's learner’s permit had been suspended the day before the accident.
After having several drinks at a party at his Santa Ana home on Aug. 28, 2008, Moulayi insisted on driving Frazee back to her house, prosecutors said. While driving his Mercedes Benz between 102 mph and 112 mph on Newport Avenue in Tustin, he lost control, crossed the center median and crashed into a utility pole, splitting the car in half. The front half of the car caught fire and firefighters had to cut Frazee free.
She was taken to Western Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. Moulayi was treated for cuts and bruises. He had a blood alcohol level of .11%.
He faces a maximum sentence of 15 years to life in state prison and is scheduled to be sentenced in October.
-- Tony Barboza
EDITOR'S PICKS:
What a shame. Two lives gone. Two families forever changed by this tragic accident. My condolences to both families.
Posted by: so sad | August 06, 2009 at 02:00 PM
Sorry, friend, that is going to be a rough one for you serving that time, but it's entirely deserved and can't ever really be enough.
Posted by: Ted Range | August 06, 2009 at 02:11 PM
String him up. 15 years? Chump change.
Posted by: Ted | August 06, 2009 at 02:32 PM
Hate to see a kid go to jail, but until drunk-driving deaths are treated as murder, they're not going to decrease. We start a war because of 3,000 people in the World Trade Center, but that's only a couple of months' worth of DUI deaths, and those go on every month in every year. Crazy.
Posted by: JimBob | August 06, 2009 at 02:41 PM
What a waste of a life. Shoot him in the head. End of story. Next...
Posted by: George Soros | August 06, 2009 at 02:41 PM
Good - what a waste. Driving a Mercedes at 17 - way to go parents. Drinking at his house - way to go parents. Another spoiled rich kid... I hope he has fun in the big house...
Posted by: Kev Kotight | August 06, 2009 at 03:07 PM
Don't drink and drive. Simple as that.
Posted by: Mike | August 06, 2009 at 03:46 PM
Bravo. May he be sentenced the entire 15 years. Will also give his parents a nice long time to think about the kind of human being they raised. An arrogant punk without any respect. They are just as guilty as the kid.
Posted by: Lysette | August 06, 2009 at 04:15 PM
Let this be a lesson to ALL teens, regardless of what county they're from, or their socio-economic status. The legal drinking age in CA is 21! Not 16, not 17 1/2, not 18 or even 20 3/4. It's 21! The poor young lady is dead and I hope that you get the book thrown at you for your heinous crime.
The parent(s)/ legal guardians of this murderer should also be charged for contributing to the delinquency of minors for allowing the consumption of alcohol in their home. That is presumably if the parent(s) and/ or LEGAL guardians are even residing in the home, let alone the country.
A 1.1 BAC, travelling in excess of the posted speed limit with an expired LEARNER'S PERMIT, not a license, but a permit, is enough to lock him up for life.
This individual should not be allowed to endanger someone else's life because he has $$, can drink underage, drive recklessly with disregard to ANYONE's safety and flaunt the law because he was a child when it happened.
Yes, a CHILD. That's ANYONE under the age of 18 for you bleeding heart liberals and 'well-to-do' dolts that think because you have $$ you can buy your way out of a mess you hath wrought on yourselves.
Teach your kids responsibility by being a parent who takes FULL accountability and responsibility for your actions and those of your kids, rather than saying it's always someone else's fault.
Posted by: GM Owner | August 06, 2009 at 04:18 PM
why is it that the drunk driver who kills innocent people usually comes out with only minor injuries. this guy should be strapped into a car and smashed into a pole then have the car set on fire around him to make the punishment fit the crime.
Posted by: derek | August 10, 2009 at 07:43 AM