Car crash into guardrail may have been due to DUI

SANTA PAULA — A single-vehicle crash left its three occupants with serious injuries and resulted in the driver being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence Nov. 2.

Oxnard resident Francisco Romero Gutierrez was arrested by California Highway Patrol officers following reports by local police investigators that a single-vehicle crash along Sycamore Road at Seventh Street had resulted in the driver and his two passengers being hospitalized at Santa Paula Hospital.
Gutierrez, 19, has crashed his car through a metal guardrail.

Despite the fact that all three were wearing seatbelts at the time of the crash, Gutierrez suffered serious injuries, including a broken neck, while passengers Cesario Sandoval, 21, and Jose Solorzano, 18, both of Santa Paula, suffered internal and facial injuries.

Gutierrez was arrested on charges of felony DUI causing serious injuries and could face trial in Ventura County Superior Court.