Blood test showed Osbaldo Esquivel was legally intoxicated
Morgan Hill – A Watsonville man who allegedly caused the death of a 34-year-old Morgan Hill man has been released from the hospital on his own recognizance while the District Attorney’s Office considers a California Highway Patrol report recommending charges against him.
Alex Jara was killed Dec. 7 when he was partially ejected from a vehicle driven by Osbaldo Esquivel, III, 33. Esquivel apparently lost of control of the vehicle as it was traveling eastbound on Watsonville Road west of Watsonville Court at an unknown rate of speed and slammed into a tree at 12:38am, according to the report. Jara was not wearing his seatbelt.
Esquivel was taken by CALSTAR to Valley Medical Center with a major head injury and minor contusions, said CHP Officer Chris Armstrong.
Valley Medical Center Public Relations Coordinator Joy Alexiou said Monday that Esquivel had been released from the hospital.
Armstrong said the report, the result of a CHP investigation, recommends Esquivel be charged with felony DUI, gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and involuntary manslaughter.
A blood sample taken at the hospital showed he was over the legal limit, but Armstrong would not comment what his blood-alcohol level was.
Jara, who is the father of an 8-year-old son and a 4-month-old son, was executive chef at Glory Days. Debra Creighton, co-owner of the restaurant, said the staff is dealing with their loss, but the family-like relationships they shared make his absence more poignant.
“We miss him, we think about him and sometimes it’s very painful,” Creighton said. “It’s really a day-by-day thing, like people say. It’s good that we have each other. It’s not like we talk about it all the time, but when we talk, I think it’s really healthy for us to share how we are feeling. He was a part of our family.”
Lalani Ponce, Jara’s girlfriend and mother of his 4-month-old son, Diego, said although she has not totally adjusted to his death, she has a lot of support.
“My whole family is here,” she said. “I have a very large family, and they’re very supportive. I’ve moved back in temporarily with my mom and dad.”
A manager at the restaurant, Lalani said she will continue to work there because she cares about the restaurant and its staff.
“It’s important to me to keep it going,” she said. “I love working with (owners) Deb and Dan. We, Alex and I, worked with them to start up this restaurant, and I want to stay here, to see that the quality is maintained, that it lives up to Alex’s standards.”
