FROM:
Karyn Sinunu, Assistant District Attorney
Matthew D. Braker, Deputy District Attorney
(408) 792-2531 For release on May 26, 2004 DOUBLE MURDER CHARGE FOR DRUNK DRIVER Scott Edward Joyal, age 27, will be arraigned today on two counts of murder and one count of felony drunk driving causing injury. Witnesses reported seeing Joyal driving his 1997 White Mercedes Benz over 100 miles per hour down Union Avenue in San Jose on Saturday night, May 22, 2004. Joyal raced through the red light at Woodard Avenue crashing into a vehicle making a left turn. The collision ejected at least two of Joyal’s three passengers, killing them both. Brian Sanchez was pronounced dead at the scene and Corey Griffith died shortly after arriving at Valley Medical Center. Both were twenty-seven years old. The third passenger, Acacia Hernandez, age 24, suffered serious injuries. Joyal’s driving history, voluntary intoxication and reckless driving show he knew the risks he was taking. His awareness of this risk and decision to ignore it support the double murder charge. Joyal faces thirty-five years to life in prison if convicted. ###