A repeat drunk driver who killed a 20-year-old woman in an alcohol-fueled crash in Irvine was sentenced Friday, Sept. 5, to 18 years to life in prison.
Antonio Calixto Navarrete, 45, was convicted earlier this year of second-degree murder, hit-and-run and DUI for causing a collision that occurred around 8:45 p.m. on Aug. 22, 2020, at Main Street and Culver Drive that left Isadora Stabel dead.
Navarrette drove his Ford F150 pickup through a red light and crashed into the side of a Hyundai Elantra. The Elantra’s driver was injured, and Stable — in the back seat — was killed.
Another driver saw Navarrete drive away from the crash and followed him. An Irvine officer caught up to Navarrette as he was parking at an apartment complex, according to a prosecution trial brief.
Navarrete told the officer that he only had one beer that day, according to the court filing, but his blood-alcohol level was later found to be 0.24 — three times the legal limit to drive.
At the time of the collision, Navarrete was on probation for a misdemeanor DUI and hit-and-run conviction. With that DUI, he was officially warned that if he drove under the influence and caused someone’s death he could be charged with murder. That allowed prosecutors to charge him with second-degree murder, rather than a lesser charge of vehicular manslaughter.
