The coroner has identified a pregnant teenager who was killed in an early morning crash in the South Bay on Wednesday.
Dulce Capetillo Hernandez, an 18-year-old resident of San Jose, was the passenger in a 1998 Honda Civic that was involved in a two-car collision on U.S. Highway 101 in San Jose around 1:50 a.m. Wednesday, according to the Santa Clara County medical examiner's office.
Capetillo Hernandez, who was also known as "Dimplezz," posted on her Facebook page that she was a "Mommy to be" and attended Independence High School in East San Jose.
A GoFundMe page has been made by Capetillo Hernandez's aunt Yesenia Ortiz to raise money for the young woman's funeral. The teenager was seven months pregnant when she died and leaves behind a premature baby boy, Ortiz said.
By Thursday, people had helped to raise $380 of the family's $10,000 goal. The newborn remains in critical condition, according to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center spokeswoman Joy Alexiou.
The California Highway Patrol noted that there is not much shoulder room along the freeway and it's certainly not enough space for two vehicles at once. But that's what happened when the 22-year-old Honda Civic driver veered off the road and hit the rear end of a parked and occupied 2002 BMW 745i, investigators say.
The three people involved in the collision reported minor injuries initially. The man driving the Honda Civic and the other in the BMW were taken to Regional Medical Center of San Jose.
Capetillo Hernandez was transported to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center for leg pain. She underwent an operation for traumatic injuries to her torso and was pronounced dead around 5:30 a.m., according to the CHP.
"There were further internal injuries and she succumbed to those injuries this morning," CHP officer Ross Lee said.
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Doctors found Capetillo Hernandez had suffered traumatic injuries to her torso. She died at 5:30 a.m. in the hospital's operating room.
When asked if her pregnancy was a factor in the teenager's death, Lee replied: "I am not sure."
Hung Tran, the 22-year-old San Jose resident driving the BMW, suffered moderate injuries. He was intoxicated and arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, Lee said.
CHP officials said the driver of the Honda, a San Jose resident, was not suspected of being under the influence of drugs or alcohol.
"We will wait for any available medical or toxicology reports," Lee said.
Both cars sustained major damage. The CHP says is also examining the BMW to see if it had any mechanical problems.
