Man Kills Girlfriend and Unborn Child in Drunk-Driving Crash
An Orange County, California, man was convicted of murder in a drunk-driving crash that killed his girlfriend and their unborn child. Danny Calvin Ruiz, 36, of Laguna Hills was found guilty of two felony counts of murder in connection with the crash, which occurred in San Clemente in May 2008.
Ruiz and his girlfriend Andrea Gerdon, 33, who was five months pregnant, were on their way home from a wedding reception when Ruiz, who was driving nearly twice the speed limit, crashed his Chevrolet Blazer into a palm tree. Gerdon and her baby were killed, and Ruiz had a blood-alcohol level of 0.17, more than twice the legal limit.
This conviction is Ruiz’s third strike under state sentencing laws. He was convicted of robbery in 1991 and carjacking in 1995. He is scheduled to be sentenced in October and faces a maximum sentence of 100 years to life in state prison.
