Victor Dunkelberger, 33, of Rocklin, Calif, died in an Aug. 11 crash south of Jordan Valley. A Malheur County grand jury issued an indictment Thursday that charges Jaila Aguilera-Pinder, of Las Vegas, with felony counts of first and second-degree manslaughter and negligent homicide. (The Enterprise/file).
VALE – A Las Vegas woman has been indicted on charges stemming from a head-on crash south of Jordan Valley that killed a California man in August.
A Malheur County grand jury issued the indictment Thursday, charging Jaila Aguilera-Pinder, 19, with felony counts of first and second-degree manslaughter and negligent homicide. She also faces misdemeanor charges of fourth-degree assault and reckless driving.
Victor Dunkelberger, 33, of Rocklin, Calif., died in the crash.
An arrest warrant was issued Friday for Aguilera-Pinder, with bail set at $500,000, said Dave Goldthorpe, Malheur County district attorney.
“The grand jury believed it was a criminal act that caused the death,” said Goldthorpe.
The Oregon State Police said Dunkelberger died Aug. 11 when his 2014 Ford Escape was struck by a 2005 Ford Focus operated by Aguilera-Pinder. Police said Dunkelberger’s car was southbound when Aguilera-Pinder, driving north, attempted to pass a vehicle in a no-passing zone about 29 miles north of McDermitt. Goldthorpe said Aguilera-Pinder did not have a driver’s license at the time of the crash.
Two passengers riding with Dunkelburger – Anya Anderson, 27, also of Rocklin and Dunkelburger’s minor daughter – were injured in the crash and transported to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center.
Dunkleberger was on his way back home with Anderson after the couple picked up his daughter from a relative in La Grande.
Aguilera-Pinder and a passenger, Keilin Alfonso-Vaquero, 25, also of Las Vegas, were injured and transported to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center.
“The idea here is it was due to ignoring the law and ignoring the common-sense rights to protect other people,” said Goldthorpe.
What happens next, Goldthorpe said, is up to Las Vegas police and the Clark County Sheriff’s Office in Nevada. When police arrest Aguilera-Pinder, she will be extradited to Malheur County, he said.
Dunkelburger’s brother, Jason, said the family is relieved to hear an arrest warrant has been issued.
“We are all still trying to get over it,” said Jason Dunkelburger.
August was a particularly lethal month for motorists on Oregon highways. The state police reported 43 traffic fatalities for the state in August, up from 34 deaths logged in August 2017.
Reporter Pat Caldwell: [email protected] or 541-473-3377.