Update: Attorney disputes claim that Oakdale mother tried to flee murder charge
The attorney for Juliette Marie Acosta said she was not trying to evade a murder charge in the March 8 canal crash that killed her young daughter.
Acosta, 26, was arrested at a downtown San Francisco hotel early Friday, April 11, the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Office reported. It said officers believed that she was trying to flee with the help of her father, Clifford Acosta Jr.
Juliette Acosta had initially been charged with felony drunk driving in the death of Reagan Herrin, 4. The defendant had been released on bail from the county jail following that arrest.
Stockton-based attorney Gil Somera said in an email that his client had planned to surrender at 8 a.m. Friday. That had been arranged to be at the Modesto office of the California Highway Patrol, he said.
“Any suggestion that my client was attempting to flee is completely false,” Somera said. “Such an accusation is not only unfounded but appears intended to inflame public opinion and provoke undue scorn.”
The California Highway Patrol is the lead investigating agency in the case, and Modesto are CHP spokesperson Officer Tom Olsen told The Bee, “Our investigation led us to believe her immediate apprehension was necessary.”
The Acostas were on a business trip to San Francisco, Somera said. An online search shows that they own a company called Acosta & Daughters Solar, which installs renewable energy systems.
Somera said he also disputed the idea that Reagan Herrin’s death should be charged as murder.
“This is an incredibly tragic and devastating situation,” he said. “I remain confident that the truth will come to light. Reckless misinformation only serves to harm our community further.”
The CHP reported earlier that Acosta was driving a Subaru SUV that went into a canal east of Hickman. The child remained trapped in her car seat while her mother was atop the fully submerged vehicle, the CHP said.
The report said Acosta was rescued by her uncle, who lives nearby. He also helped a sheriff’s deputy remove the child from the car seat, the CHP said. Reagan died the next day at Memorial Medical Center in Modesto.
The crash was reported at about 11 p.m. on Arlberg Road where it ends at Canal Bank Road and the Turlock Main Canal. The CHP said Acosta was not injured and was arrested at the scene on the DUI charge.
A GoFundMe account was created to aid the child’s father, Gage Herrin, with “unexpected expenses” due to Reagan’s death. It had raised $22,270 as of April 7, well beyond its $14,000 goal.
“Any remaining money that has been donated after expenses will be donated back to the community on Reagan’s behalf in hopes to prevent incidents like this from happening in the future,” the appeal said. “Thank you again for all your continued support and we pray that justice is served for Reagan.”
Officer Tom Olsen, spokesperson for the CHP in Stanislaus, praised the unnamed deputy and uncle in a March 9 email to The Modesto Bee.
“Law enforcement officers take an oath to risk their own lives rather than swerve from the path of duty,” Olsen said. “Although unharmed, this deputy did exactly that.”
This story was originally published April 11, 2025 at 8:43 AM.
