1 Dead In Suspected DUI Crash On Hwy 101 In Gonzales

GONZALES, CA — One person is dead and another is suffering from major injuries after what investigators suspect was an alcohol-involved collision in Gonzales on Tuesday night, according to the California Highway Patrol. At 11:19 p.m., a white GMC Sierra driven by Gonzales resident Charles Bailey Jr. failed to stop and struck the rear of a silver Chevrolet Malibu on Gloria Road, east of U.S. Highway 101, CHP officials said.

The Chevrolet then veered off the south edge of the road, where it overturned and came to rest on its wheels. The impact pushed the GMC off the north end of the road into a vineyard, according to the CHP.

The driver of the Chevrolet, a 55-year-old Salinas man, was pronounced dead at the scene, CHP officials said. His name is not yet being released.

Bailey was taken to Natividad Medical Center with moderate injuries while the 42-year-old Gonzales woman who was a passenger in the car was treated for a broken pelvis.

A preliminary investigation revealed that Bailey, traveling west, was impaired by his level of intoxication and the car's accelerating speed.

Those factors caused him to fail to observe the car in front of him, according to the CHP.

The collision is under investigation. Witnesses are asked to call the CHP's Monterey-area office at 831-770-8000.

By Bay City News Service

Patch file photo by Renee Schiavone