A woman has been charged in connection with the death of a 3-year-old boy following a crash on Interstate 680 in San Ramon back in September.
Yarenit Liliana Malihan, who had previously been arrested for a DUI that involved endangering her own child, faces gross vehicular manslaughter and felony driving under the influence charges after her Toyota Sequoia slammed into a disabled Toyota Camry, killing Elijah Dunn and injuring three others, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Malihan, the wife of an Alameda County sheriff's deputy, was determined to be driving under the influence of drugs and arrested after the crash. She was later released on bail, according to the CHP and jail officials.
Nine months after the fatal wreck, the Contra Costa County District Attorney's office issued an arrest warrant for the two felony charges against Malihan, who was also found drunk in public in Pleasanton last week.
The charges, however, garnered mixed reactions from the victim's family.
"I think we should be happy that she's finally been arrested, and it's disappointing and saddening to the family that it took this long to get her charged," Jeff Hubins, the family's attorney, said.
Following the crash, Dunn's grandfather described the youngster as being a sweet child who would always "bring a smile to everybody's face no matter what."
Local
An 11-year-old boy and 1-year-old girl along with their mother managed to survive the crash.
