O.C. man convicted of murder in fatal Valentine's Day crash
A Costa Mesa man was convicted of murder and felony hit-and-run Thursday stemming from a Valentine's Day crash in which he killed a 20-year-old woman while driving with a blood alcohol level more than twice the legal limit.
Gustavo Adrian Vega, 23, who has a prior conviction for driving under the influence, ran a red light and plowed into another car on Sunflower Avenue in Costa Mesa, the Orange County district attorney's office said.
Cara Lee, a passenger in the vehicle that was struck, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Vega ran away and was apprehended by Costa Mesa police a short while later, the district attorney's office said. His blood-alcohol limit was 0.17%, prosecutors said. He was also convicted of possessing cocaine.
Vega is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 16 at the Santa Ana courthouse. He faces a maximum sentence of 19 years and eight months to life in state prison.
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— Robert J. Lopez
Photo: Gustavo Adrian Vega. Credit: Orange County district attorney's office.
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