A second woman accused of conspiracy to commit a crime in connection with the 2020 ATV collision that injured a Princeton teen – and the Good Samaritan who tried to intervene – pleaded no contest on Tuesday to two felony charges.
Skye Flores, 34, of Oroville, was convicted of child endangerment and being an accessory after the fact in a plea deal with the District Attorneys Office that could keep her out of state prison.
According to the California Highway Patrol, Flores and her 15-year-old son, Silas, were passengers in Raymond Zapiens 2014 Buick LaCross, as he drove northbound on Highway 45 on May 31, 2020, when he allegedly veered off the road and struck a stalled ATV, driven by Destiny Sorrels, who suffered neck and other injuries.
According to District Attorney Matthew Beauchamp, Flores and Zapien had both been drinking alcohol when they were out for a drive in the afternoon.
Following the first crash with the ATV, Zapien attempted to drive away from the scene when a separate vehicle, driven by Kyle Wills, pulled in front of the Buick to block Zapiens escape. Zapien then crashed into Wills vehicle, disabling his own vehicle, and then fled the scene on foot, the CHP said.
Beauchamp said Flores and Zapiens sister, Veronica, later met up with Zapien and helped Zapien avoid arrest by driving him from Colusa County.
Through separate attorneys, Veronica Zapien and Flores have both admitted they were involved in aiding Zapiens escape and knew of his whereabouts prior to his arrest in Yuba City nearly a month later.
Zapiens trial on attempted murder and other charges, which was scheduled later this month, has been postponed until Oct. 12, due to unavailability of a defense witness for medical reason.
Flores will be sentenced on Aug. 23. –