A Diamond Bar man pleaded guilty Monday in connection with a wrong-way crash near Whittier that killed a Los Angeles County sheriff’s recruit and injured more than two dozen others.
Nicholas Joseph Gutierrez, 25, pleaded guilty Monday to one felony count of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and nine felony counts of reckless driving causing injury, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Gutierrez is scheduled to be sentenced May 8.
He is facing five years on probation and a suspended eight-year state prison term that he could face if he violates any of the terms of probation.
The charges stem from a Nov. 16, 2022, crash in which 76 members of Sheriff’s Academy Class 464 were on a training run along Mills Avenue near Bentongrove Drive when Gutierrez, driving southbound in an unincorporated area near Whittier, crossed into northbound lanes and struck members of the group, prosecutors said.
Twenty-five recruits were injured, including 10 who suffered serious injuries. Alejandro Martinez-Inzunza later died from his injuries on July 28, 2023, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
“Today’s plea … cannot undo the devastation of that day, nor will it bring back the life that was lost,” District Attorney Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “But it does mark a step toward justice and a measure of closure for the victims and their families whose lives have been forever changed.”
Authorities said a yearlong investigation found no evidence that the crash was intentional and determined that Gutierrez likely fell asleep at the wheel before drifting into the recruits.
Gutierrez had waived his right to a jury trial in January, with the case expected to be decided by Los Angeles County Superior Judge Laura Walton if the case had proceeded.
He was initially arrested hours after the crash, but was released a day later, with sheriff’s officials saying the complex case needed more extensive investigation.
Gutierrez was re-arrested in November 2023 by the California Highway Patrol and released on $500,000 bond within less than two hours.