Former Dinuba principal charged with murder for DUI crash near Reedley
TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- A former principal from Dinuba is facing murder charges, accused of driving drunk and crashing into another car near Reedley, killing a mother and daughter.
43-year-old Blake Benham is accused of killing 55-year-old Gloria Barajas and her 35-year-old daughter, Brenda Quinonez in the crash that happened last December on Road 56 near Avenue 430.
The California Highway Patrol says Barajas and Quinonez were heading home from Christmas shopping at the Tulare Outlets with Gloria's husband and younger daughter.
As they drove north in their Nissan Rogue, officers say a Ford pickup driven by Benham veered into their lane, colliding head-on with the family's SUV.
The crash killed Barajas and Quinonez and sent their other two family members to Community Regional Medical Center.
The CHP says Benham was under the influence of alcohol when he crashed.
RELATED: Dinuba principal bonds out of jail after arrest for deadly DUI crash near Reedley, officials say
Benham was the Principal of Kennedy Elementary School at the time of the crash, but has been on administrative leave since the crash.
The Tulare County District Attorney's Office says he surrendered himself to CHP officers Wednesday without incident. If convicted, Bennan faces life in prison.
Stay with ABC30 for the latest details on this developing story.
