Teen Killed In DUI Crash Mourned By Rohnert Park Students

ROHNERT PARK-COTATI, CA — About 100 students, families and school staff gathered in the Rancho Cotate High School quad Friday evening to honor a teen killed in a fatal April 11 Novato crash.

Many of the teens at the memorial wore the number 25 that Niko Vargas Ortiz once wore on his Cougar football jersey.

Six days earlier, the community learned Vargas Ortiz had died in a Novato crash that authorities say involved alcohol.

On Friday, family, and teachers stood with students as the crowd mourned Vargas Ortiz and the four other teenagers injured in the crash, the Press Democrat reported.

The vigil marked the emotional end of a week of mourning. School officials said all students involved in the crash were either current or former students in the Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District.

Days before the collision, students had taken part in the “Every 15 Minutes” program, a two-day campus initiative designed to show the consequences of impaired driving. The timing sharpened the impact for many students who had just seen the simulation become reality, the Press Democrat reported.

Emergency personnel received several 911 calls around 1 a.m. April 11 reporting a single-vehicle crash at San Marin Drive and Simmons Lane in Novato. Responders arrived and found a car that had struck a utility pole, police said.

Five teenagers, ages 16 to 18, were taken to the hospital after the crash. Vargas Ortiz died from his injuries, while the others remain in serious or critical condition, including the 17-year-old driver, whom police suspect was driving under the influence of alcohol.

Authorities have not charged the driver. Novato police did not return calls about whether they will arrest the driver, and the Marin County District Attorney has not yet announced what charges, if any, prosecutors will pursue.

But underage drinking is illegal, and California's strict “zero tolerance” laws, which make it illegal to drive with any measurable amount of alcohol or specified drugs in the body.

Teens arrested for a DUI risk jail, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, face losing their driver's license and prosecution, as well as attorney fees, court costs, other fines, and insurance hikes. They also face losing academic eligibility, college acceptance, and scholarship awards.

On Friday, “Notes to Niko” adorned a memorial wall where students remembered their former school mate amid his photograph and football jersey, the Press Democrat reported.

Four of the teens attended El Camino and Rancho Cotate high schools, and the fifth had previously been enrolled in the district.

District officials said the community remained “heartbroken” and confirmed grief counselors would be available across campuses to support students and staff as they process the loss.