We were at the stop light and he ran it through here and he hit us head on. >> Yeah, my truck was poking down the wrong way about 100 plus and smacked me. >> Yeah, this guy said I'm not sure. I can give you guys a little test. >> You've been drinking? >> No, sir. >> Tuesday, August 20th, 2024. Albuquerque, New Mexico. In the northwest of the city, Po Delort and Second Street form one of the busiest and most complex intersections in the area. That afternoon, routine traffic was suddenly interrupted. What first looked like another roadway incident would soon reveal a far more unsettling backdrop. A driver far too young, a record of prior violations, and a decision made hours earlier that would determine everything that followed. I'm Tyler and this is your daily dose of crime. working on a second. >> We have somebody in the >> in the FBI single injury right there. He's he's hanging upside down. I haven't moved him, but he he's good. Take a look. >> Okay. >> We were at the stop line and he ran it through here and he hit us on. >> Okay. Yes, ma'am. So, which vehicle were you driving? This one right here. >> Who else is Where's your husband? Is he the gentleman in the white shirt? >> He's driving for the dog. Hey, man. >> Oh, there he is. He's right there. >> Hold on. >> That white truck was cooking down the wrong way about 100 plus and smack dude. Yeah, he backwards on the road, dude. Pulling ass. I'm hauling ass, dude. >> All right. What? When the first officer arrives, the focus is not on the chaos amongst bystanders, but on the white pickup truck lodged against a pole. Among the wreckage, the body of a passenger is visible, while the driver remains trapped inside. From that moment on, attention is divided between two fronts, confirming the victim's condition and determining what led to a young man getting behind the wheel and barreling into one of Albuquerquey's busiest intersections with such force that the vehicle was left unrecognizable. The answers are not yet clear, but it's evident that this case goes far beyond a simple accident. >> Windshield. >> This is your vehicle. >> Yes. >> All right. I So, I'm going to have you guys >> You get a police report. Do I get a confirmed? >> Yes, sir. We'll be taking the report today. >> And then what do I I mean, what do I >> So, we'll give you the report number and give that to your insurance. Right now, there's a lot of other things I got to do. >> I'm going to have you guys come over here. Just >> Bernalo County, right? >> Yes, sir. Bernalo County. We'll give you the report number. >> Do you need medical attention, ma'am? >> No, it's just a scrape. I'm okay. I'm just very very shaken up. I'm just I'm freaked out. I'm sorry. So sorry. >> No, it's okay. Uh >> sorry about >> It's okay. So, your dog looks like it's >> She's shaking. >> Is she shaking a little bit? >> Is she freaked out? But she came back. >> The driver right here in the gray. >> Yeah. Let me get your driver's license, please. Hey, he's possibly dead and entrapped in the vehicle. >> I don't have it. >> Okay. >> Can I give you guys my name? My name? >> Yep. No, you're good. >> This guy says we're drinking and I'm not a surgery. I can give you guys a soriety test. >> You've been drinking? >> No, sir. >> Okay, don't worry about it right now. >> Okay, let's stand over here in the shade. >> Can I call my dad again, sir? >> Not yet. Come here. >> I don't want to. >> No, you're good. What's your name? Miguel Miguel Chavez. >> Miguel Chavez. >> Yes. >> Yes. >> But I can't have him show up just yet. Just because the nature of things. We got one up. Paul, heads up. We got one running up. >> He's the driver of that, he said. >> I don't know. >> Amidst the disorder, attention shifts to the driver, identified as 20-year-old Miguel Chavez. At first glance, he shows no serious injuries. He's conscious, speaking, and moving without difficulty. His reaction, however, is difficult to ignore. Instead of showing concern for the passenger beside him, he focuses on defending himself, repeatedly telling officers he has no license, demanding a breath test, and in a phone call to his father, mixes up vague excuses, saying that he fell asleep and that he doesn't know what happened with urgent pleas for help. From a psychological standpoint, this behavior reflects a denial of reality, shifting attention toward his legal situation rather than confronting what was unfolding only inches away. >> Mr. Good. >> I can't have you over there. >> My girlfriend's right here. >> I don't care. Hang out right there. You're not part of this, man. No, you need to chill. Someone's dead, so you need to chill. >> Yeah, my girlfriend's right there. She's pregnant. >> So, stay right by that tree. She's being talked by her right there. >> Hold on. Listen to me for one goddamn second. >> Chill the out, dude. >> My girlfriend's pregnant. Okay. >> You want to go to jail? >> Chill, dude. >> I'm trying to >> I'm going to chill right here, but chill. >> Chill here and I'll sit. >> I'll stay right here. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. You going to talk to him? I'm going to go get the ID. >> He's the driver of that vehicle. That one we're trying to figure out. Pregnant girlfriend. And this guy is This is girlfriend. This is girlfriend. Which car were you in? >> That one right there. >> Okay. So, she was in the blue Jeep Cherokee and she's also pregnant. So, blue turkey pregnant. This guy was driving. >> Yes. >> Okay. Who was in this truck? >> We're still trying We're still trying to figure that out. Yeah. Maybe >> except for that guy. >> Really quick, man. What What did you see? >> Uh, so I'm coming down the the off ramp here. I saw like kind of clouded glass. This is already um they're worried about their dogs and I'm like, who called 911? So, I just ran up here, saw that individual there. I saw him girdling a little bit. >> It's Yeah, he's gone. >> Yeah. Um, >> as officers work to bring order to the scene, police records reveal a decisive fact. Miguel Chavez was already tied to DWI cases in Valencia County and had lost his license after multiple prior violations. At just 20 years old, he had accumulated a driving history, which made this crash the continuation of a pattern, not an isolated incident. The victim identified as 49-year-old Ernesto Areola was Chavez's co-orker. That relationship deepened the tragedy, a man with a stable life and strong family ties, who by trusting a colleague would be exposed to decisions that were never his to make. For prosecutors, the contrast between their paths began to give the case a weight that went far beyond the technical reconstruction of the crash. >> Hello, ma'am. I'm Deputy Zabbo. I'm with the traffic unit. Um, we're going to try to get you out here so you're not sitting in your car. >> Thank you. >> Um, I know you did gave a written statement, but can you just verbally tell me what you saw? >> I'm sitting here waiting for the light to change so we can turn left and this person coming from casino just screeching across this guy right straight at us, flipping, and then like I was right there like I his tire was hitting my car, but I backed up because all the fluid was coming. I was scared I was going to blow up. Okay. >> Yeah. So, you were probably right up on the passenger tire. >> Yeah. >> Do you remember what like what the light cycle was? Was it red? >> It was red for us. You weren't ready to go. Yeah. Yeah. So, I don't know. I'm guessing this way it was green. I don't know. I was just waiting for it to change for us. And I I mean, you could just see I was like, "What is he doing?" And straight up craziness. Yeah. >> Okay. Um, >> but imagine those people that I don't know if it's them, but they have seen the same thing. It happened so quickly. So quickly. >> And all three vehicles right here were just out of stock. >> Yeah, we're just at a complete stop. Yeah. >> Um, did you see anyone come out of this truck and what they remember what they were wearing or anything like that? >> Somebody that came around me said the person in there was dead. I said, "I'm not going to go look. I don't want to see anything." So, I don't There was no nothing. I just He was at my car, locked up. We didn't I called 911 and we didn't tell you. >> Okay. Um, do you mind just hanging out just for a little bit longer? I just want to take some pictures of your car before you take off. Okay. >> Probably talk to her. >> Okay. >> Where's our Just in there? >> Seating is right here. >> Seating's right here. Drivers at the hospital. Valente and Hammer. >> Yeah. Driver's 47. So driver is for >> 22 29s for for 47 related stuff. >> 122G >> and there's opens all over the place and during my initial contact cuz Paul when I got here I initially blocked off up there before relocating. >> Paul was trying to get this guy out of the truck. I come to help him. Driver comes up and says, "Hey, but I'm not going to pass." >> Okay. >> Completely unasked. >> Obviously seat belted into passenger seat belt and there is a car seat back there but from what we can tell there's no kid in it. Did the driver say there was any? Uh, >> no. We discovered it afterwards, but you can see the car seat like from what we can tell if we look down there. It doesn't appear that there's a kid in there, but I guess we'll know when fire is able to cut it open and get in there more. >> The straps are all undone and everything. >> Yeah, straps. So, just be a check. >> In those minutes, key evidence was secured. Officers found open alcohol containers inside the truck and field tests would confirm the presence of THC in Chavez's system, establishing a case of poly substance use considered high risk in DWI investigations. That evidence supported the charge that Chavez was under the influence of more than just one substance at the time of the impact. At the same time, the profile of Ernesto Areola underscored the loss. He was not a casual passenger, but a seasoned worker with long-standing ties to Albuquerque. His death represented not only the ending of a life, but also the sudden rupture of a family and workplace that depended upon him. For prosecutors, this contrast between Chavez's past and the victim's stability became a central argument in sustaining the vehicular homicide charge. >> I'm going to Yeah. Hello. >> So, who are you guys? I guess I guess how are you guys? >> It wasn't the white people. >> No, you guys. >> Yeah. That's all. So right now all all I can tell you are so we got one driver. So just because of the state of the pickup truck, we're unable to like positively identify who the passenger is right now. Um >> but we didn't want to keep you guys waiting in suspense wondering what's going on. Um, but we need to let you know that part >> and once we have identified him, we'll be able to give you guys more information. Are you okay? >> I'm so sorry. Like I want you to remember that they're doing everything that they can do and there's anything that you guys need on our behalf. We're truly here for you guys right now. It's a very stressful. >> Yeah, let's just see what they >> I just I don't want to have you guys waiting out in the heat obviously. Um, you guys are more than welcome to wait in your cars or >> The case of Miguel Chavez became a clear example of the risks that came with cannabis legalization in New Mexico. Not because consumption itself is illegal. The law allows it for recreational use, but because the prohibition against driving under its influence remains intact. The confusion between what is legal and what is safe persists, and this case became proof of its consequences. Following the August 20th, 2024 crash, prosecutors would charge Chavez with seconddegree vehicular homicide, driving while intoxicated, and driving on a revoked license. The vehicular homicide charge, classified as a secondderee felony, carries a sentence of up to 9 years in prison. While the DWI and revoked license charges add penalties, including fines, extended loss of driving privileges, and mandatory treatment programs. Together they form a criminal horizon that could define his life at a very early age. Judges ordered that Chavez remain in custody at the Bernardo County Detention Center pending trial, citing both the severity of the case and his record of repeated offenses. At 20 years old, he had already amassed multiple traffic violations and open cases in Valencia County, evidence that earlier sanctions had failed to change his behavior. That history of repeat offenses was decisive in denying him conditional release and keeping him behind bars.