Nefi Lopez Gutierrez Killed in North Hollywood DUI Crash
Vidal Cruz Jr. faces murder charges after allegedly striking two people exiting a parked car on Colfax Avenue
Nefi Lopez Gutierrez, 35, and an unidentified woman in her 50s were killed in a pedestrian crash on Colfax Avenue near Calvert Street in North Hollywood on Sunday, April 12, according to the Los Angeles Police Department.
Vidal Cruz Jr. faces two counts of murder. He was arrested and booked into the Van Nuys Jail in lieu of $4 million bail after investigators determined he was speeding and under the influence of alcohol.
His northbound gray Acura struck the victims just after they exited the driver's side of a parked white Toyota Camry at 2:25 a.m. They were thrown forward onto the road before his car hit the Camry, veered into a private driveway and crashed into several unoccupied vehicles.
Lopez Gutierrez died at the scene. Paramedics rushed the woman to a hospital where she later died.
Three occupants remaining inside the Camry suffered minor injuries.
The LAPD's Valley Traffic Division continues to investigate the crash. Authorities asked anyone with information to contact detectives.
The families of Nefi Lopez Gutierrez and the second victim now face the profound grief of a sudden loss caused by an allegedly impaired driver. While the criminal justice system pursues murder charges against the motorist, civil avenues exist to support the grieving families.
In crashes such as this, safety analysts point to the severe vulnerability of people outside of vehicles. National Legal Analyst Candice Bond, Managing Partner at Bond Legal, noted that "The human toll of a pedestrian crash is a tragedy that our whole community feels. If a car hits someone at forty miles per hour, there's an eighty-five percent chance the person walking won't survive the impact."
According to the Governors Highway Safety Association, 7,148 pedestrian deaths occurred nationwide in 2024, with nighttime incidents accounting for over 75% of those fatalities.
Investigators will examine toxicology reports, vehicle event data recorders, and potential dram shop liability to determine if a bar or establishment over-served the driver before the fatal collision. According to National Legal Analyst Stefano Formica, Of Bond Legal, "Here's what many people don't realize about the physics of a pedestrian impact. If a car is going forty miles per hour, a person's chance of survival drops to fifteen percent."
When a driver faces murder charges following a fatal collision on a local road like Colfax Avenue, it highlights the severe legal consequences of impaired driving. The Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office pursues these charges when an individual exhibits a conscious disregard for human life, often referred to as a "Watson murder" in California DUI cases.
Law enforcement will reconstruct the exact sequence of events. This includes analyzing the suspect vehicle's speed, reviewing any available surveillance footage from nearby homes or businesses, and finalizing the toxicology reports that form the basis of the criminal case.
California wrongful death statute
Under Cal. Code Civ. Proc. § 377.60, surviving family members may file a wrongful death action. California applies pure comparative fault. The statute of limitations is 2 years from the date of death.
Recoverable damages may include loss of financial support, loss of companionship, funeral expenses, and the decedent's pre-death pain and suffering.