$2M Bail for Father Charged with DUI Murder of His Children
Photo: Stock Image
By F. Scott Faulkner
Santa Barbara County, CA
A Cuyama man faces two counts of murder following a high-speed crash that killed his two
young daughters as he attempted to flee from the cops.
Lompoc resident Brian Hernandez Cervantes,23, was allegedly driving under the
influence of alcohol on the afternoon of November 20 when California Highway Patrol officers
attempted to stop his speeding sedan.
According to Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Department Public Information Officer Raquel
Zick, Cervantes “accelerated and fled north, recklessly passing vehicles on the narrow two-lane
road.” Moments later, Cervantes lost control on a curve and collided with an oak tree. The
impact split the vehicle in half, killing his two daughters, three-year-old Stella Aliyah
Hernandez, and seven-month-old Luna Alani Hernandez.
According to the CHP Coastal Division Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team, the
girls were secured in child safety seats, but the violent collision “ejected one child still strapped
in her seat.” Hernandez Cervantes sustained moderate injuries and was arrested at the scene.
With a history of driving offenses, including citations for speeding, driving on a suspended
license, and unsafe speeds, Cervantes was charged with murder, child endangerment, DUI, and
reckless driving causing injury, with his bail set at $2 million.
