Gwinnett Daily Post

LAWRENCEVILLE - One child and three adults were killed in a multi-vehicle accident Sunday when a tractor-trailer collided with a Honda, authorities said.

Gwinnett County Police Department spokesman Cpl. Darren Moloney said the Honda was stopped behind a 1982 Motor Coach Industries conversion travel bus at a traffic light at the intersection of Ga. Highway 316 and Winder Highway.

A tractor-trailer traveling behind the Honda failed to stop and pushed it into the bus, killing the Honda's driver, 38-year-old Virginia Jimenez-Cabrera of Winder, and her 12-year-old daughter, Victoria Cabrera, as well as two unidentified men described as Hispanic and about 37 and 31 years old.

"Jimenez's family and friends couldn't give us any real information on the (identifications) of the two males in the back," Moloney said. "We're now trying to identify them by fingerprints."

Moloney said he was unsure how long the identification process could take.

Ernest R. Brown, 41, of Winder, driver of the tractor-trailer, was taken to Gwinnett Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries, Moloney said.

Authorities said a Lincoln Town car was also struck. Neither the driver, 62-year-old John W. Thomas of Bogart, nor the driver of the bus, 48-year-old Steven Poole of Bethlehem, required medical attention.

At this point in the investigation, drugs or alcohol do not appear to be contributing factors but tests are pending, according to a Police Department press release.

Brown told investigators he fell asleep while driving, Moloney said. As far as how fast Brown was traveling when he collided with the Honda, Moloney was unsure.

"Final estimations on speed are only found in the final report," Moloney said of the document, which is not yet available.

According to Moloney, charges against Brown are pending.

Nine injured in

three-vehicle crash

In a second accident, seven adults and two children were taken to local hospitals Sunday morning after a three-vehicle accident in Lawrenceville, authorities said.

Moloney said a white truck traveling on Johnson Road toward Sugarloaf Parkway collided with a white van and a red SUV about 1 a.m.

According to a police report, Rachel Johnson, 24, of Douglasville was traveling south on Johnson Road when she failed to yield at a stop sign and collided with a Mercury Mountaineer driven by 26-year-old Deysi Gutierrez of Suwanee.

Johnson's truck spun, hitting a third vehicle, a Toyota Sienna driven by 43-year-old Huong Thi Nguyen of Lawrenceville, while Gutierrez's SUV rolled several times.

According to a Fire Department press release, firefighters had to use specialized rescue tools to remove one of the passengers from the van.

Vinh Nguyen, 49, of Lawrenceville, Huong Thi Nguyen and an unidentified passenger in the van were transported to local hospitals.

Adam Schofield, 28, of Tucker and 18-year-old Medina Jose of Suwanee, passengers in the SUV, were also taken to area hospitals, according to the report. Two children ages 5 and 1 were transported to Scottish Rite Children's Hospital.

Johnson admitted to having had a drink before driving, according to the report. She tested positive for alcohol and was arrested and charged with driving under the influence and failure to stop at a stop sign after being transported to Gwinnett Medical Center.