Man booked in I-10 deaths

• By DEBRA LEMOINE
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Oct 11, 2009 - Page: 1B

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State Police booked Dwayne Leggett on Saturday with five counts of vehicular homicide after all five victims of an Ashburn, Ga., family died of injuries received in a fiery crash Oct. 2 on Interstate 10 in Baton Rouge.

Leggett, 30, 1624 Clear Lake Ave., Apt. D, Baton Rouge, had previously been booked with negligent homicide and other criminal counts in the deaths, but the counts changed after State Police received results of Leggett’s blood-alcohol test on Friday, troopers said in a written statement.

Leggett’s blood-alcohol content was determined to be 0.18 percent by weight, based on grams of alcohol per 100 cubic centimeters of blood, troopers said.

In Louisiana, a blood-alcohol reading of 0.08 percent or higher is considered presumptive evidence of intoxication.

Leggett also was booked at the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison with second-offense driving while intoxicated.

Two days before the Oct. 2 wreck, Leggett was released from a pretrial diversion program he began after a first-offense DWI arrest on April 17 in West Baton Rouge Parish.

The program requires participants to sign a form admitting guilt, but they do not enter a guilty plea before a judge, 18th Judicial District Attorney Ricky Ward said Friday.

Upon successful completion of the pre-trial diversion program, Leggett would not have a DWI arrest on his record, Ward said.

Ward said he has the option of prosecuting Leggett for that April DWI arrest on the grounds that he violated the terms of his pre-trial diversion program through the Oct. 2 wreck. Ward said he has not decided whether to do so at this time.

Leggett was driving a 2005 Ford pickup truck west at 2 a.m. when he crossed over the Siegen Lane overpass and hit the rear of a 1994 pickup, troopers have said.

The 1994 Ford was at a standstill because of road construction, troopers have said.
Upon impact, it burst into flames, inflicting third-degree burns on all five members of the Ashburn, Ga., family inside the cab, troopers have said.

Alondra Brionca, 2, died at the scene, troopers have said. Maria Barrillos, 54; her daughters, Sonia Gomez Brionca, 27, and Jacqueline Gomez, 35; and son, Rito Gomez, 22, died days later from their injuries, troopers and family friend Beatriz Garcia said.
Sonia Gomez Brionca was the toddler’s mother.

Speaking by telephone Saturday from her Ashburn home, Beatriz Garcia said the family members were on the way to Texas to attend a quinceañera, a traditional Hispanic “coming out” party for a 15-year-old girl. Garcia did not know if the celebration was for a relative but said the family had relatives in Texas.