An 18-year-old man has been charged with multiple counts, including driving while intoxicated and driving without a license, in a fatal crash that killed two Louisiana 18-year-olds and injured two others early Sunday morning.
The Louisiana State Patrol said that Axel Fores-Cordova was found to have a blood alcohol concentration of seven times the legal underage limit. He was charged with two counts of vehicular homicide, two counts of vehicular negligent injuring, driving while intoxicated, open alcoholic container in vehicle, driving left of center, no driver’s license, and no seatbelt.
Flores-Cordova was not injured when his 2012 Jeep Grand Cherokee crossed the center line into the path of a 2023 Kia Rio driven by Rylan Oncale on Louisiana Highway 3090 at about 1 a.m. Oncale steered left to try to move out of the way, but Flores-Cordova steered back right to correct himself and struck the Kia head on.
Oncale suffered serious injuries and was taken to a hospital, where he died. His front seat passenger, Taliyah Crochet, died at the scene. Both were wearing seatbelts. Police are awaiting a toxicology report for Oncale.
The two backseat passengers suffered moderate injuries and were taken to an out-of-area hospital for treatment.
State Patrol Sgt. Ross Brennan told WWL that the legal blood alcohol concentration limit for those under 21 is .02, while it’s .08 for those over 21.
“The reason why it’s so low is a young person, they’re lacking the experience behind the wheels,” he said. “They’re already susceptible to being involved in crash. Couple that with the effects of alcohol and drug impairment, chances of getting involved in a serious crash significantly rise.”
Crochet’s mother, Devv Deen, told WWL that she’s “having such a hard time grasping the fact that like it’s really just over. Like, they’re gone.”
“It’s just so hard, these kids work so hard, so hard for 18-year-olds, they had such old souls … and now it’s all just gone,” she said.
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[Featured image: Rylan Oncale and Taliyah Crochet/Facebook]
