Guilty Plea In DUI Crash That Killed Passenger On I-10

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, CA — A 28-year-old man accused of driving under the influence and crashing into the guard rail on Interstate 10, killing the female passenger in his vehicle, pleaded guilty Tuesday to DUI gross vehicular manslaughter.

In addition to the guilty plea, Giovanny Michel Solis Rivero admitted a sentence-enhancing allegation of a serious felony involving great bodily injury on a non-accomplice or the use of a dangerous weapon Tuesday at the Larson Justice Center in Indio, according to case records.

Rivero received a six-year suspended prison sentence later in the morning involving 60 months of probation and 180 days in a work release program, according to Thalia Hayden of the Riverside County District Attorney's office. He was also ordered to pay restitution and not consume drugs or alcohol during the probationary period.

The crash was reported at 2:05 a.m. on Dec. 24, 2023, involving a silver Toyota Camry that was found facing west, just under the Jefferson and Indio boulevards overpass, according to the California Highway Patrol.

CHP public information officer David Torres said the driver was going westbound on Interstate 10 in Indio when he made an unsafe turn to the right and hit the guard rail. The crash caused fatal injuries to the passenger.

The passenger was identified by the Riverside County coroner's office as 35-year-old Teresa Herrera of Desert Hot Springs. She was pronounced dead at 2:20 a.m.