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Families fight outside Sacramento courthouse in case of alleged drunk driver who killed 5

By Aja Seldon
Published  February 15, 2023 2:26pm PST
Sacramento County
KTVU FOX 2

Families fight outside court of accused drunk driver in deadly NorCal crash

Tensions were high outside a Sacramento County court for the trial of a suspected drunk driver accused of killing five people, including teens, last week.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Tensions boiled over outside a Sacramento County courthouse on Tuesday, where the family of a victim killed by an alleged drunk driver clashed with the suspect's relative.

Cameron Garcia, 28, is accused of driving drunk on Highway 160 when the 2007 Cadillac Escalade he was operating veered off the road and crashed into a tree, south of the Freeport Bridge last Thursday, authorities said. His five passengers, ranging in age from 16 to 29, all died.

The Sacramento County Coroner's Office identified them as Curvontay Swygert,16; Faith Nicole Samuel, 18; Monte Nunn, 29; Izabelle Larae Salaz-Stephens, 19, according to KCRA. Relatives told the news outlet the fifth victim was 17-year-old Aahliya Mariah Garcia. They were all on a camping trip.

5 dead in hit-and-run including teens in Sacramento; driver facing multiple charges

A man has been arrested for carjacking and a fatal hit-and-run that killed five in Sacramento Thursday afternoon, officials said.

After the crash, Garcia allegedly carjacked a passerby and led police on a chase, authorities said. He was arrested in Elk Grove that same day.

Garcia was arraigned in a Sacramento County Court on Tuesday on five counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, carjacking, and evading police while driving recklessly.

The victims' families weren't allowed inside the courtroom over COVID protocols, KCRA reported.

Video from outside the courthouse shows a scuffle between one of the victim's family members and the suspect's relative.

Witnesses told the outlet that Garcia's family member, possibly his brother, was taunting the parents of Monte Nunn, from across the street.

Nunn's father, Robert Nunn, claimed the man had threatened him and his family which led to a physical altercation, according to KCRA.

Robert Nunn was taken into custody and later released. The other involved man was taken into custody, but it's not clear if he was released.

Garcia is being held on a $5.5 million bail in the Sacramento County Jail. His next due in court on March 29.