A 36-year-old man accused of driving under the influence and causing a fatal crash must stand trial on felony charges including murder, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Alexander Frank Ortega was held to answer Wednesday on one felony count each of murder, driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury and driving with a blood-alcohol level of 0.08% or more causing bodily injury, according to court records. He additionally faces sentence-enhancing allegations of causing great bodily injury.
Ortega initially pleaded not guilty to the charges in December 2023 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.
Officers responded at 9:45 p.m. Dec. 19, 2023, to a report of a traffic collision on Indio Springs Parkway east of Golf Center Parkway, Indio Police Department spokesman Ben Guitron told City News Service.
A white GMC pickup was being driven west on Indio Springs Parkway when it crossed lanes and went against traffic, Guitron said. The truck then struck a white Saturn sedan, which was occupied by a man and a female passenger.
“When they collided it was a pretty serious accident,” Guitron said. “The occupants of the Saturn had to be extracted by Indio Fire, Cal Fire and then they were transported by ambulance to the hospital.”
The man died at John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital in Indio, according to the Riverside County coroner’s office. He was identified as 53-year-old Martin Gutierrez of Indio.
It was unclear what level of injuries the passenger sustained.
Ortega was subsequently booked into the John J. Benoit Detention Center in Indio, where he remained held on $2 million bail, according to inmate records.
According to court records, he pleaded guilty in 2014 to a misdemeanor count of driving under the influence of alcohol at a level of 0.08% or more.