Passenger dies when drunk driver crashes into second floor of San Jose apartment building

(Image courtesy of San Jose Police Department)

(KRON) — A man was killed early Saturday morning when his vehicle went off the road and crashed into the second story of an apartment building, San Jose police said. The woman behind the wheel was reportedly drunk, police said.

Just before 2:30 a.m., SJPD officers responded to the area of ​​McKee Road and Francis Drive after a single-vehicle crash was reported. A preliminary investigation revealed that a woman was driving a red 2022 Subaru sedan at a high rate of speed when the driver lost control. The vehicle crossed the center line and all eastbound lanes and left the roadway at the south curb of McKee Road.

The vehicle broke through a fence and crashed into the second floor of the apartment building. The apartment building was evacuated and no residents were injured, police said.

The driver was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The passenger was pronounced dead at the scene. The driver was arrested at the hospital for intoxicated manslaughter.

The victim’s identity will be released by the Santa Clara County Coroner’s Office, police said. The incident was San Jose’s 23rd fatal crash and 23rd traffic fatality of 2024.