UPDATE: Riverside woman charged with DUI/Murder after Menifee crash that killed Perris woman

UPDATED: Tuesday, Dec. 7, 9:53 a.m., With additional details from Menifee PD.

See Original Story below.

MENIFEE, Calif., — Officials have released additional information about a deadly head-on collision in Menifee that killed a Perris woman and injured her juvenile passenger early Saturday evening, Dec. 4. The fatal crash happened in the 27000 block of Encanto Drive, near Rouse Road and adjacent the 215 Freeway, according to officials.

The victim killed in the collision has since been identified as Guillermina Maria Gonzalez, 37, of Perris. She was declared deceased at the scene.

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According to Menifee Police department, the Riverside woman who caused the fatal crash was determined to be driving under the influence of alcohol and she was subsequently arrested on DUI/murder and other charges related to the fatal incident. She has since been identified as 57-year-old Sandra Barber.

Barber was later booked into the Cois Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter, DUI causing injury or death, and willful cruelty to a child.

Online jail records indicate she was released from custody within hours of her arrest after posting $75,000 bail or bond and she is scheduled to be arraigned at the Murrieta Southwest Justice Center on Jan. 21.

Anyone with further information regarding this collision is encouraged to contact the Menifee Police Department
Traffic Unit at (951) 723-1690 or Sergeant Matt Bloch at (951) 723-1565 or by email.


Original Story: Menifee three-vehicle crash leaves one dead, two injured

UPDATED: Sunday, Dec. 5, 1:06 p.m., With Coroner’s release of victim’s information.

Originally Published: Sunday, Dec. 5, 10:27 a.m.

MENIFEE, Calif., — Authorities say one person was killed and two others were injured in a two-vehicle, head-on traffic collision in Menifee early Saturday evening, Dec. 4. The deadly crash happened in the 27000 block of Encanto Drive, near Rouse Road and adjacent the 215 Freeway, according to officials.

City of Menifee police officers and Cal Fire – Riverside fire personnel were dispatched to the scene around 6:15 p.m. after receiving reports of a multi-vehicle collision with at least one victim trapped, Cal Fire said in a social media release after the accident.

When officials arrived they confirmed finding two involved vehicles, since described as a Honda Accord and Lexus RX. Both vehicle sustained major front-end damage and firefighters found two injured victims, including one person who was trapped along with a juvenile inside the Honda.

Firefighters began a cut and rescue operation to free the critically injured victim from the Honda while paramedics began evaluating and treating the two other victims injured in the collision.

Despite life-saving efforts, the driver of the Honda succumbed to her injuries and passed away at the scene. The other two victims, including the deceased victim’s 16-year-old passenger, were transported by ground ambulances to area hospitals with injuries since described as minor and moderate.

The Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner’s Office has since identified Guillermina Maria Gonzalez, 37, of Perris, as the woman killed in the collision. A Coroner’s release indicated she was pronounced deceased within minutes of paramedics arriving at the scene, at 6:26 p.m.

During their subsequent investigation, officers determined that Barber was traveling southbound on Encanto Drive, when her Lexus veered into the northbound lane of Encanto Drive, causing her vehicle to collide head-on with the victim’s Honda.

Officials are continuing to work to determine if the driver who caused the collision was driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs when the fatal crash occurred.

No further details were immediately available and Menifee PD’s accident investigation is continuing.



Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).

Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.