Woman, Three Children Hospitalized In DUI Crash

A mother and her three young children were hospitalized Tuesday night after the woman allegedly drove drunk and crashed her SUV containing her kids into a guardrail and over an embankment in Santa Rosa.

The highway patrol said the 23-year-old North Bay woman was drinking Tuesday evening when she argued with her husband before she sped off in her vehicle with the kids in the car.

She crashed her Chevy SUV along Laughlin Road at the edge of the Sonoma County Airport.

The woman and two of her children -- a two-year-old boy and a six-year-old girl -- were being treated at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital after the crash. The woman behind the wheel is under arrest for suspicion of driving under the influence.

A third child -- a four-year-old girl -- was airlifted to Children’s Hospital in Oakland.

She was the most seriously injured in the rollover crash. The impact took out about 20 feet of guardrail. The SUV became airborne before landing on the embankment.

The two girls were ejected from the vehicle along with the driver

The two-year-old boy remained in the vehicle strapped in a child's seat. Officers said it was amazing no one was killed.

"Looking at the speed she was going, I'm sure they suffered significant injuries being ejected from the vehicle," said CHP Sgt. Bob Barr. "The driver got ejected and she landed in the roadway."

CHP later identified the woman as Christian Galvan. Authorities said Galvan also had an expired California driver's license.

Sources told KTVU the woman was confronted earlier Tuesday evening by her husband who was concerned about her drinking. KTVU was told the husband left the house to avoid a confrontation.

Shortly after that, the woman also left with the children and crashed just after 6 p.m.

The highway patrol said the crash will lead to serious consequences beyond the physical trauma suffered.

"For a parent to get in a vehicle and do something like this, you bring in charges of child endangerment and stuff like that," explained Barr.