Woman Convicted Of DUI That Killed Pleasanton High Schooler

LIVERMORE, CA — A woman pleaded no contest this week to two counts of second-degree murder after two of her passengers, including a Village High School student, were killed in a Livermore drunken driving crash.

Lauren A. Davis, 30, entered her plea Monday, the day before her trial was slated to begin, the Alameda County District Attorney's Office announced Wednesday.

Davis will be sentenced Oct. 19 at the East County Hall of Justice in Dublin, prosecutors said. She faces a mandatory sentence of 15 years to life in prison.

Davis initially pleaded not guilty in 2019.

She was accused of killing Village High School student Violet Campbell, 16, and Livermore native Alexys Garcia, 25, in a single-car crash the night before Thanksgiving in 2017. Davis was driving.

Two other passengers in the car suffered injuries that were not serious. Davis was able to remove herself from the wreckage, prosecutors said.

Davis admitted to drinking before driving and appeared to be intoxicated, CHP said. A blood test taken after she was arrested showed that she had a blood alcohol content of 0.16, two times the legal limit of 0.08, and tested positive for cannabis, according to CHP.

“This senseless tragedy took the lives of two young women, and could have been avoided,” District Attorney Nancy O’Malley said in a statement. “Our office is committed to ensuring that those driving under the influence are held accountable for their actions.”

Davis and her friends began the night of Nov. 22, 2017, at a bowling alley where she smoked cannabis, took whiskey shots and drank beer, prosecutors said. She drove to a downtown Livermore bar, took more whiskey shots before heading in, then had a drink inside the bar, prosecutors said. The group drove to another bar that night.

Davis was driving a car full of people when she ran a red light, according to prosecutors. She was driving eastbound on Stanley Boulevard at speeds estimated at between 70 to 80 mph when she struck a curb and lost control of her Kia SUV, which veered off the right side of the road and rolled multiple times, according to prosecutors and CHP.

Campbell was seated behind Davis and died instantly after being partially ejected in the crash, prosecutors said. Garcia was ejected and died a week later while hospitalized in a medically induced coma for major head injuries, a broken pelvis and broken bones.

The crash came six months after Davis completed a 12-hour class of DUI education after pleading guilty to alcohol-related reckless driving in 2016, prosecutors said.

Four years prior to the crash, Davis pleaded guilty to a reckless driving charge for driving under the influence of cannabis, prosecutors said.

— Patch Editor Autumn Johnson contributed to this report

Correction: A previous version of this article misstated the potential sentence Davis may serve and the plea she entered, and spelling of a victim's name.

See also:

• Remembering Alexys Angela 'Lexy' Garcia Of Livermore
• Funeral Services For Teen Killed In Livermore Crash
• Celebration Of Life For Woman Killed In Livermore Crash
• Grief Counseling Available To Students Following Fatal Crash
• Livermore Driver Facing Murder Charge, DUI Arraigned
• Driver Suspected Of DUI In Deadly Livermore Crash ID'd