Driver who livestreamed deadly Los Banos crash, Obdulia Sanchez, pleads not guilty

Thursday, July 27, 2017

Obdulia Sanchez pleads not guilty to all chargesDuring Obdulia Sanchez's first court appearance she sat emotionless as the court read her charges.

LOS BANOS, Calif. (KFSN) -- During Obdulia Sanchez's first court appearance she sat emotionless as the court read her charges. When asked if she understood what those charges meant she said, "a little bit."

A different Sanchez than the one who was live streaming on social media before, during, and after the deadly crash. The 18-year-old is accused of six felony charges all revolving around the allegation she was driving while drunk.

The District Attorney's Office said her blood alcohol level was at .10.

But Sanchez's Public Attorney, Ramnik Samrao, said don't be quick to judge.

"We don't know that she was drunk that's the allegation," Samrao said. "Anybody can say very easily that she is responsible for the death. She believes that too, she said multiple times for anyone that has seen the video-- 'I killed my sister, I killed my sister.' So there's no doubt about that, but whether a crime was actually committed-- that's a separate story."

Chief Deputy District Attorney Harold Nutt describes the case against Obdulia Sanchez

Public Defender Ramnik Samrao describes the defense of Obdulia Sanchez

Both the DA's office and Sanchez's Public Defender agree that driving on your cell phone, while illegal in the state of California, is only a traffic violation. Because of that it is not worth pursing in this case.

"It creates an added dimension to the problem of driving under the influence and distracted driving. It's bad no matter how it happens," said Harold Nutt, Merced County Chief Dep. District Attorney.