Banning woman who killed skateboarder while driving drunk sentenced
A nurse who killed a 20-year-old skateboarder in a hit-and-run while she was driving drunk in Banning pleaded guilty today to DUI gross vehicular manslaughter and was immediately sentenced to 15 years in state prison.
Lilliana Ruvalcaba Diaz, 30, of Banning admitted the felony charge, as well as a sentence-enhancing allegation of fleeing the scene of a crime, under a plea agreement with the Riverside County District Attorney's Office. In exchange for her admissions, prosecutors dropped several related allegations.
Superior Court Judge Mark Singerton certified the terms of the plea deal and imposed the sentence stipulated by the prosecution and defense.
Diaz was arrested last year following a 13-month investigation into the death of Leron Sanders.
According to an arrest declaration affidavit filed by the Banning Police Department, the defendant consumed a bottle of Cisco wine and a 24-ounce Budweiser on the night of Dec. 8, 2019, while at a friend's house. She later admitted to investigators that when she left the residence to return home, she was intoxicated, but chose to get behind the wheel of her Honda Civic anyway, the declaration stated.
About 5:30 p.m., while driving through the intersection of Apex and Ramsey streets, she slammed into Sanders as he was skateboarding in a pedestrian path, out of the way of traffic, police said.
The defendant struck him on the driver's side of her sedan, and his body landed on her windshield but rolled off as she sped away, according to the affidavit.
Diaz later told detectives that she was unaware that she had struck someone.
Other motorists came upon Sanders laying in the roadway and called 911. He was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.
Diaz's mother, whose identity was not disclosed, saw the condition of her daughter's car when she parked outside their residence in the 500 block of 40th Street and immediately feared an injury accident had occurred, prompting the woman to call the police, according to the declaration.
The ensuing investigation led to patrol officers questioning Diaz that night and determining she had a blood alcohol level of nearly .2 -- or well over twice the legal limit to operate a motor vehicle, according to court papers.
When asked whether she realized she had been in a crash on the way home, Diaz replied, "she did not know what happened," according to the police statement.
"Lilliana confirmed that she knew the importance of stopping at an accident scene to make sure everyone was okay and the procedures involved," the affidavit stated.
"I'm aware that I should not be driving and drinking," she told officers.
The defendant made no other admissions.
There was no word on why the criminal complaint was not filed until a year after the deadly hit-and-run. Diaz was taken into custody without incident on Jan. 22, 2021.
She had no documented prior felony convictions.
