Woman involved in deadly South Lake Tahoe accident pleads no-contest

In the early hours of November 24, 2014, a drunken high speed car ride down Pioneer Trail in South Lake Tahoe ended the life of one local woman and injured another.

The driver of the car, Olga Nayeli Pena-Arce, pleaded no-contest on September 14, 2015 to charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and DUI causing injury.

Pena-Arce, who was 20-years-old at the time of the accident, was driving her 2000 Saturn sedan westbound on Pioneer Trail at speeds in excess of 75 mph in the 35 mph area of the road near Edna Drive. Pena-Arce had two passengers, 21-year-old Aimee Campos of South Lake Tahoe and Wayne Walker, 25, of Sacramento.

Pena-Arce lost control of the vehicle and slammed into a retaining wall. The collision killed Campos and injured Waler.

The South Lake Tahoe Police Department initiated an investigation into the collision. Investigators found Pena-Arce had been to at least one bar that evening, consumed alcohol and subsequently drove with a BAC over .08%.

Pena-Arce will return to El Dorado County Superior Court on November 13 for sentencing. She faces a possible state prison sentence up to a maximum of 12 years, 8 months.

This case was investigated by the South Lake Tahoe Police Department, CHP Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT,) and the El Dorado County District Attorney’s Office.