LAKE WALES, Fla. — A woman who police believe was driving a Chevrolet Camaro when it crashed in Lake Wales in 2023, killing the passenger, was arrested Friday, Feb. 9 for DUI manslaughter.
Jeanette Gonzalez of Lake Wales was driving the Camaro on Feb. 25, 2023, when it hit the rear-end of a Chevrolet Silverado on Highway 27, causing the Camaro to flip and ejecting Gonzalez and 28-year-old Eliecer Padilla. Padilla was pronounced dead at the scene.
Gonzalez' blood/alcohol level was 0.210 at the time of the crash, according to the Lake Wales Police Department.
The 2015 Camaro was traveling southbound on Highway 27 when it rear-ended the Silverado. Seconds before impact, the Camaro was traveling at 137 miles per hour.
Gonzalez was airlifted to Lakeland Regional Medical Center with serious injuries.
The occupants of the Silverado were not injured.
Following an extensive investigation, an police obtained an arrest warrant for Gonzalez. She was booked into Polk County Jail Processing Center.
