DUI Manslaughter Charge Filed In Fatal Domenigoni Parkway Crash

WINCHESTER, CA — A 54-year-old man accused of killing a motorist in a driving under the influence head-on collision in Winchester was charged Friday with DUI gross vehicular manslaughter and other offenses.

Ernest "Sniper" Lugo of Westminster was arrested Sunday for allegedly causing the deadly wreck along Domenigoni Parkway at Alamar Mesa Drive.

Along with the manslaughter count, Lugo is charged with driving under the influence of controlled substances and a sentence-enhancing great bodily injury allegation.

The defendant, who is being held in lieu of $75,000 bail at the Byrd Detention Center, was slated to make his initial court appearance Friday afternoon at the Southwest Justice Center in Murrieta.

According to the California Highway Patrol, Lugo was at the wheel of a 2016 Chevrolet pickup that entered the eastbound lane of Domenigoni while traveling west at an unconfirmed speed about 7:20 p.m. Sunday.

"The pickup was going the wrong way," CHP Officer Jonathan Torres told City News Service. "A 2008 BMW was eastbound on Domenigoni, going the right way, and the pickup collided head-on with the BMW."

The BMW and pickup sustained significant damage. Debris from the impact was hurled onto a Nissan sedan trailing the BMW, but damage to that car was minor, according to Torres.

Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department paramedics reached the location minutes later and pronounced the BMW driver, identified by the coroner as 65-year-old Hemet resident Jose Montanchez Jr., dead at the scene.

Lugo and his passenger, whose identity was not disclosed, suffered minor injuries and were taken to a hospital for treatment. The defendant was screened for alcohol or drug impairment, and Torres alleged that officers verified Lugo had been driving under the influence.

He was taken into custody without incident.

The passenger was treated and released from the hospital.

Lugo has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.