A Missouri woman scheduled to plead guilty next week in connection with the Capitol riot was driving the wrong way in Franklin County Wednesday night when she crashed into another car, killing the passenger and seriously injuring the driver, according to authorities.
Emily Hernandez, 22, of Sullivan, was placed under arrest for driving while intoxicated causing the death of another person and driving while intoxicated causing serious physical injury of another person, said Cpl. Dallas Thompson of the Missouri Highway Patrol.
"She's not been physically taken into custody," Thompson told The Star. "She was placed under arrest and then released to the hospital because of her injuries.
"Our crash reconstruction team has the investigation now. Normally, we complete our investigation and submit our reports to the prosecuting attorney."
Hernandez was heading westbound in the eastbound lanes of Interstate 44 near St. Louis shortly after 7 p.m. when the right front portion of her 2014 Volkswagen Passat struck the right front of a 2019 Buick Enclave, according to the Highway Patrol crash report. Both drivers had swerved to try to avoid the crash, and the Buick went into the median, striking the cable barriers.
The passenger, Victoria N. Wilson, 32, of St. Clair, was pronounced dead at 7:25 p.m., the report said. The driver, Ryan E. Wilson, 36, of St. Clair, was taken to a hospital with serious injuries. Hernandez was transported to another hospital with serious injuries. She was the only one wearing a seat belt, the report said.
Victoria Wilson had two sons, ages 15 and 10, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. Ryan Wilson, her husband, suffered broken bones in a foot and had a dislocated ankle and several lacerations, Victoria Wilson's mother, Tonie Donaldson, told the Post-Dispatch.
Victoria Wilson was a home healthcare aide who worked mainly with people with disabilities, including children.
"She had a heart of gold," Donaldson told the Post-Dispatch.
Ryan and Victoria Wilson were driving home Wednesday night after dinner at an Applebee's to celebrate their wedding anniversary Sunday. They were celebrating early, Donaldson said, because Victoria works weekends.
A GoFundMe site has been set up by Victoria Wilson's sister to help with funeral costs.
Ethan Corlija, a St. Louis attorney representing Hernandez, called the crash "a tragic event."
"She's truly heartbroken that this happened," he told The Star. "She's involved with someone being harmed and the loss of life."
Corlija said the crash investigation is ongoing.
"They're waiting for test results to come back and then decisions will be made on whether or not charges are appropriate," he said. "The investigation is focusing on whether or not she was impaired when the accident occurred."
Corlija said he spent Wednesday evening at the hospital with Hernandez.
"She had some significant injuries," he said, "and had one injury that required surgery to close a head wound." A Highway Patrol arrest record shows she was released from the hospital Thursday.
Last year, Hernandez was arrested nine days after the Capitol riot, the first Missouri resident to be charged in connection with the insurrection. Photos of her and her uncle holding up a name plate torn from an entrance to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office were widely distributed on social media.
Her uncle, William Merry Jr., of St. Louis, was charged Feb. 4 along with Paul S. Westover, of Lake St. Louis. The three allegedly went inside the Capitol together, and Hernandez and Merry were accused of stealing Pelosi's name plate. Merry pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to theft of government property, a misdemeanor. Westover pleaded guilty last month to a misdemeanor count of parading, demonstrating or picketing in a Capitol building.
Hernandez was charged with knowingly entering or remaining in any restricted building or grounds; disorderly conduct which impedes the conduct of government business; stealing, selling, conveying or disposing of U.S. property; disruptive conduct in the capitol buildings; and parading, demonstrating, or picketing in the capitol buildings.
On Dec. 29, prosecutors filed a new document charging Hernandez with a single misdemeanor count of entering and remaining in a restricted building or grounds, and a plea agreement hearing has been scheduled for Monday.
She likely faces a maximum penalty of six months in jail and a $5,000 fine, along with paying $500 in restitution for damage to the Capitol building, which prosecutors say totaled about $1.5 million.
Corlija told The Star that the plea hearing for Hernandez is still set to take place Monday.
"But this is kind of a moment-by-moment situation," he said. "Her attorney in D.C. and I have been in communication all morning and the plan is to proceed forward on Monday. Of course, that could change, and a lot of it has to do with the condition Emily will be in. If her medical condition is compromised, then we won't be able to proceed."
