CHP: Driver in double fatal crash was using cellphone

A head-on collision that killed an off-duty Stanislaus County Sheriff’s sergeant and a local baker in December was the result of distracted driving, a California Highway Patrol official said this week.

Officer Eric Parsons said 33-year-old Vanessa Zamora was using her cellphone as she was driving north on Santa Fe Avenue near Lakewood Memorial Park the evening of Dec. 4.

She crossed into the southbound lane where her Honda Accord collided head-on with a Honda CR-V driven by 43-year-old Sgt. Jeremy Fielder.

The impact killed both drivers and caused major injuries to Fielder’s wife, Lora, who was in the front passenger seat.

The couple was traveling home to Hilmar from Riverbank where they’d had dinner, Parsons said.

Zamora, who owned Vanessa’s Bakeshop in Modesto, was going home after visiting family in Turlock.

Parsons said it is unclear whether Zamora was dialing or engaged in a conversation when she drifted into the opposing lane, but cellphone records indicate she placed a call at or very close to the time of the crash.

This story was originally published March 3, 2016 at 4:47 PM with the headline "CHP: Driver in double fatal crash was using cellphone."