Quarterly report records DWI-influenced wrecks

Records cover November 2007 through January 2008

| The New Mexican

5/5/2008 - 5/6/08

Dixon resident Jerry Muniz was a ninth-grader in 2000, when he posted a note on Geneology.com looking for relatives.

He found a few in Santa Fe, including some uncles. But they lost each other again Jan. 5 when Muniz, 23, died in a one-car accident on N.M. 75 near Dixon, according to state police. He died while being transported from the car he drove after apparently drinking alcohol, according to his older brother Steve Muniz. A cousin who was with him survived the accident.

Muniz is among 42 people who died in New Mexico in DWI-related vehicle crashes from Nov. 1, 2007, to Jan. 31, 2008, according to records provided by the New Mexico Department of Transportation. The New Mexican is periodically publishing quarterly reports of fatal car crashes related to DWI. The list may not include DWI-related fatalities on tribal lands. New Mexico has made strides in tackling the DWI problem with a Drunk Buster hot line, stiffer penalties for repeat offenders and ignition interlock laws. The list below is a reminder of the ongoing human cost of DWI.

Steve Muniz said his little brother grew up in Dixon, was well-liked in the community and worked at Siete del Norte, caring for elderly people. He enjoyed taking them to doctor's appointments, to the store or to the laundry.

"The older people miss him," Steve Muniz said. "Some of them still ask for him. They don't understand he won't be coming back."

Steve Muniz said he doesn't think his brother had a drinking problem. "He just overdid it one night and it cost him his life."

The youngest person to die in a DWI-related accident during the Nov. 1 to Jan. 31 period was 2-year-old Tyrica Enrico of McKinley County. Three young men — Jonas Atole, 18, Patrick Fernandez, 29, and Rondell Valdez, 19 — all died Nov. 12 in Rio Arriba County in a DWI-related crash. No DWI-related crash deaths were listed in Santa Fe County for the period.

Quarter: Nov. 1, 2007, to Jan. 31, 2008

Nov. 1, Francis Romero, 24, Valencia County

Nov. 4, Jorge Reyes, 27, Lincoln County
  
Nov. 4, Christopher Osborne, 18, Lincoln County

Nov. 4, Maria Herrera, 21, Lincoln County

Nov. 5, Daniel Emig, 54, Lea County

Nov. 6, Tommy Carrillo, 44, McKinley County

Nov. 7, Alfonso Diaz, 37, Cibola County

Nov. 10, Mary Sandoval, 56, Doña Ana County

Nov. 10, Freddie Garcia, 45, Bernalillo County

Nov. 12, Jonas Atole, 18, Rio Arriba County

Nov. 12, Patrick Fernandez, 29, Rio Arriba County

Nov. 12, Rondell Valdez, 19, Rio Arriba County

Nov. 15, Donald Snaza, 65, Guadalupe County

Nov. 15, Lawanda Charley, McKinley County

Nov. 17, Leigh Koenig, 43, Lincoln County

Nov. 17, Luis Ricarte, 27, Cibola County

Nov. 21, Tyrica Enrico, 2, McKinley County

Nov. 21, Leanna Antonio, 24, McKinley County

Nov. 21, John Ulibarri, 51, Socorro County

Nov. 25, Steven Ernst, 53, Luna County

Dec. 1, Alicia Llamas, 27, Lea County

Dec. 3, Cecil Irving, 52, McKinley County

Dec. 5, Raymond Malone, Bernalillo County

Dec. 5, Rick Carr, 56, Sierra County



Dec. 7, Chris Marquez, 19, Rio Arriba County

Dec. 8, Anthony Baca, 53, Bernalillo County

Dec. 11, Rudy Jake, 27, Sandoval County

Dec. 26, Richard Holguin, 27, Doña Ana County

Dec. 27, Paul Szachitowski, 35, Taos County

Dec. 30, Kristi Portmore, 41, Torrance County

Jan. 1, Juan Gutierrez-Poras, 37, Roosevelt County

Jan. 1, Marvin Garcia, 44, Bernalillo County

Jan. 1, Josephine Laweka, 47, Bernalillo County

Jan. 5, Jerry Muniz, 23, Rio Arriba County

Jan. 5, Mark Garcia, 50, Sandoval County

Jan. 11, Jessica Apachito, 36, McKinley County

Jan. 12, Anthony Pettingrew, 41, McKinley County

Jan. 18, Darren Benavidez, 23, San Miguel County

Jan. 19, Brandon Platero, 24, McKinley County

Jan. 19, Sharnell Cook, 14, McKinley County

Jan. 19, Chynthia John, 20, McKinley County