SACRAMENTO-
Aaron Caudillo was arraigned Monday on three counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.
Caudillo, 24, was recently released from the hospital, and appeared in court in a wheelchair and neck brace.
He is accused of driving drunk in the wrong direction on I-80 then crashing head on into another car, killing all three people inside. It happened on January 10th.
Disturbing new details emerged in court.
“The defendant’s blood alcohol level was tested at .14. Additionally his blood was found to contain a delta 9 THC, the active ingredient in marijuana,” the prosecutor said.
Prosecutors painted the picture of a young man acting recklessly behind the wheel.
“He was the only one in his car, between his legs was an open bottle, a handle of Captain Morgan which was partially empty,” said the prosecutor.
Three young adults from Granite Bay were killed while driving home from a party: Kendra Langham, Matthew Azar and Mathew Beardwitt.
In the weeks since the crash, friends of those victims came together to heal and mourn the loss of those young lives. One of those friends came to court to see Caudillo in person.
“My heart stopped just like it did when I saw his picture released a few days ago, my heart just dropped to the floor,” said Christine Ickes, friend of Kendra Lagham.
Caudillo’s attorney says the young man has no criminal record and that Monday was his first time before a judge.
That doesn’t matter to friends of the victims.
“I’m not sure what I want. I know I want justice. I know I want peace of mind for the families cuz they can’t come back, they’re gone,” said Ickes.
The judge raised Caudillo’s bail to $1 million. His next court date is set for March 5th.
