A Napa County judge on Friday refused to free a Napa woman from jail while she awaits trial on murder charges in a 2025 drunken-driving crash that killed her two young children, finding that releasing her would put the public at risk.
Key takeaways
- Judge Scott R.L. Young denied Yesica Barajas’s request to be released on her own recognizance at a hearing Friday, June 26.
- Barajas, 31, faces two counts of second-degree murder in the March 16, 2025, crash that killed her son and daughter, ages 10 and 9.
- The judge found “clear and convincing evidence that release would result in great bodily harm or injury to others.”
- She has been held in the Napa County jail since the crash and has pleaded not guilty; a murder conviction could bring 15 years to life in prison.
Judge cites danger to the public
Young denied the release at a hearing Friday, saying there was “clear and convincing evidence that release would result in great bodily harm or injury to others,” according to the Napa Valley Register, which first reported the ruling. The judge said he did not reach the decision “lightly,” weighing the facts of the case, Barajas’s past offenses and other factors.
Barajas, 31, has been held in the Napa County jail since the crash on March 16, 2025, when her Nissan Maxima left the Imola Avenue exit off southbound Highway 29 and struck a tree. Her 10-year-old son, Damian Montanez, and 9-year-old daughter, Aaliyah Montanez, were killed. She was jailed after a weeklong hospital stay.
Murder charges added under the Watson doctrine
Barajas was initially charged with two counts each of gross vehicular manslaughter and child abuse and one count of causing death while driving under the influence. In July 2025, the Napa County District Attorney’s office added two counts of second-degree murder under the Watson doctrine, which holds that an intoxicated driver acts with “implied malice” by doing something they know is likely to kill someone. She has pleaded not guilty.
Defense argued for an attainable bail
Barajas’s attorney, Robert Casper, argued in a June 2 filing that California law requires a court to set bail “in an amount reasonably attainable for the defendant” on any allegation short of first-degree murder. Because the crash was an unintentional act and not an expression of violence, Casper wrote, a judge cannot set an unattainable bail that effectively forces a defendant to stay behind bars.
What’s at stake
A second-degree murder conviction carries a prison term of 15 years to life. The manslaughter counts carry four to 10 years, the child-abuse counts two to six years, and the DUI count 16 months to three years.
Frequently asked questions
What did the judge decide?
Judge Scott R.L. Young denied Yesica Barajas’s request to be released on her own recognizance while she awaits trial, finding clear and convincing evidence that her release would endanger others.
What happened in the crash?
On March 16, 2025, Barajas’s Nissan Maxima left the Imola Avenue exit off southbound Highway 29 in Napa and struck a tree. Her two children, Damian Montanez, 10, and Aaliyah Montanez, 9, were killed.
Why is a DUI crash charged as murder?
Prosecutors added two counts of second-degree murder under California’s Watson doctrine, which allows a murder charge when an intoxicated driver is found to have acted with “implied malice” — knowing the conduct was likely to cause death.
What sentence could she face?
A murder conviction could bring 15 years to life in prison. The other counts carry shorter terms, from 16 months for the DUI charge to up to 10 years for manslaughter.