SHAFTER, Calif. — A woman facing felony charges of vehicular manslaughter and willful cruelty to a child, following a crash that killed her 6-year-old son in Shafter back in February, reportedly failed to take her epilepsy medicine and experienced a seizure moments before the crash.
According to court documents obtained by 23ABC, on Feb. 21, just before 3:40 p.m., 31-year-old Breanna Jimenez was driving with her three children on West Tulare Avenue in Shafter when she drove off the road and crashed into an orchard nearby. One of Jimenez's children told police she noticed her mother "began having a seizure" and described it as "a convulsion [with her] head moving back into the driver's seat."
According to the Kern County Sheriff's Office, 6-year-old Jaden Jimenez suffered major injuries due to the crash. He was taken to Kern Medical where he died from massive head injuries, the documents said.
The two other children, ages 4 and 10 according to court documents, were in the vehicle and suffered moderate injuries.
One of the children told police, according to court documents, that shortly before the crash one of the children took off his seat belt. The documents said that Jimenez turned to tell him to put it back on and that was when her seizure began.
The documents said Breanna told police she had only recently gotten her license after her doctor approved her because she was taking her medicine. She said she was supposed to be taking the medicine twice a day, according to the documents.
However, the documents said Breanna told police she had not taken her anti-seizure medication since the morning of Feb. 20. She said she had forgotten to take it that morning because she was in a hurry, according to the documents.
Jimenez is facing one count of felony manslaughter and three counts of felony cruelty to a child. She is currently being held on a $50,000 bail. She is due back at the Shafter Court on June 9 for a bail review and pre-preliminary hearing.
