SAN JACINTO — A San Jacinto woman is being held at the Cois M. Byrd Detention Center after the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office issued a warrant charging her with second-degree murder in a Perris crash that killed an 8-year-old girl, the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department said.
The child was Camila Leon, 8, of Perris, according to the Riverside County Sheriff-Coroner. Next of kin have been notified. The coroner’s file is marked final.
Silvia Corona, 52, of San Jacinto, was identified by the Perris Sheriff’s Station Traffic Reconstruction Team as the suspect in the two-vehicle collision, the department said. The charges described in the sheriff’s release are allegations. Corona has not been convicted.
Deputies from the Perris station responded at 5:36 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 15, to the intersection of Ramona Expressway and Rider Street on a report of a major-injury crash involving two vehicles, the sheriff’s release said. The file number is PE262270081.
The coroner listed the time of injury as 5:35 p.m. at that same intersection.
Upon arrival, deputies found five injured people in one of the vehicles, the department said. Two had life-threatening injuries. The driver and sole occupant of the second vehicle was also hurt. All were taken to local hospitals.
One juvenile passenger was later pronounced dead at a hospital, the sheriff’s release said. A second juvenile passenger remained hospitalized in critical condition, according to that account. The department has not issued a later public update on the second child’s condition.
The coroner said Camila died at 6:04 p.m. Aug. 15 at Riverside University Health System, 26520 Cactus Avenue in Moreno Valley. The injury location matches the crash scene. The investigating agency is the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office, Perris Station, under the same file number.
The sheriff’s first account said the identity of the dead child would not be released at that time. The coroner’s office later posted the name.
Perris traffic investigators continued the case and identified Corona as the suspect, the department said. On Aug. 17, she was arrested and booked into the Cois M. Byrd Detention Center for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury, according to the sheriff’s update.
On Aug. 18, Corona posted bail and was released, the department said. The sheriff’s release does not state the amount of that first bail.
On Aug. 20, the Riverside District Attorney’s Office issued an arrest warrant for an additional charge of second-degree murder, the Sheriff’s Department said. Perris deputies went to Corona’s residence and took her into custody without incident. She was booked into the Cois M. Byrd Detention Center for second-degree murder. Bail was set at $1 million.
The investigation remains open, the department said. No further details would be released at the time of the Aug. 20 update.
Sgt. Evan Bechtold is listed as the reporting supervisor on the Perris station item, titled “Fatal Traffic Collision – Suspect Arrested (Update).”
Anyone with information is asked to call Deputy Joseph Puente at the Perris Sheriff’s Station at (951) 210-1000, or Riverside County Sheriff’s Dispatch at (951) 776-1099.
