A Missouri woman who is facing five charges in connection with her role in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol after being pictured holding House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D.-Calif.) nameplate that day, was involved in a fatal car crash on Wednesday that left one person dead and two others seriously injured, authorities said.
According to the traffic crash report, accused Capitol rioter Emily Hernandez, 22, was allegedly driving while under the influence of alcohol and going the wrong way on Interstate 44 in Franklin County, Mo., at the time of the collision. The crash took place on the eve of the first anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack.
Police said Hernandez was driving a 2014 Volkswagen Passat westward in the eastbound lane and suffered serious injuries. The incident took place around 7:09 p.m. on Wednesday, according to NBC News.
The victim who died in the crash was identified in the report as 32-year-old Victoria N. Wilson. She was in the passenger seat in a car that was hit by Hernandez, The Hill reported, citing authorities. Her husband, Ryan Wilson, who was driving the car, was seriously hurt and taken to Missouri Baptist Sullivan hospital.
Hernandez faces two charges related to driving while intoxicated and causing a crash that resulted in death and serious physical injury, the Missouri Highway Patrol said, according to NBC News. If convicted, she could face up to 20 years in prison.
The crash took place on the eve of the first anniversary of the Jan. 6 attack. Hernandez’s lawyer Ethan Corlija said she needed surgery to close a head wound and told the St. Louis Post Dispatch the crash was “a tragic event” and “not intentional.”
As noted by The Hill, Hernandez was previously hit with five charges in 2021 in connection with the riot, according to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
