Hayward driver charged in fatal crash allegedly closed eyes while speeding
Preschool teaching assistant mourned in Hayward after car crashes onto sidewalk
Loved ones are remembering a preschool teaching assistant whose life was tragically taken Monday morning in Hayward. 26-year-old Lydia Guerra was walking to work at Ruus Elementary when an out-of-control driver struck her on the sidewalk.
HAYWARD, Calif. - A driver charged with vehicular manslaughter in the death of a preschool teaching assistant in Hayward allegedly closed his eyes while speeding with the intent to harm himself, authorities said. Instead, he claimed the life of the 26-year-old.
Kelvin Leovander, 35, was charged by the Alameda County District Attorney's Office with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence.
The crash occurred on Feb. 10 at the intersection of Tennyson Road and Calaroga Avenue.
Lydia Guerra was walking to a bus stop in the area to get to work at Ruus Elementary School when Leovander struck her on the sidewalk.
Video captured by a nearby driver showed a vehicle careening into a parked car, a row of trees, and onto the sidewalk where Guerra had been standing.
Leovander was initially placed on a mental health hold after the accident. He was later charged in Guerra's death.
Hayward police said Leovander had tried to kill himself by closing his eyes and speeding, but instead crashed into a parked car, poles, and then Guerra.
The Source: Hayward police, Alameda County District Attorney's Office, along with previous reporting