Driver gets 25 years in fatal Sonoma Valley DUI crash

A San Francisco man who caused a fatal crash that killed his passenger and left a 5-year-old girl paralyzed was sentenced Monday to 25 years in prison.

Damodar Chandradas, 26, was under the influence of alcohol, cocaine and marijuana at the time of the 2013 crash on Highway 121 in Sonoma Valley in which he lost control of his Jaguar while speeding and drove head-on into another vehicle.

His passenger, Sergei Beoglozan, of Ukraine, was killed.

Gustavo Adolfo Mejia, 26, and his 5-year-old daughter, Jazzlin, were in an oncoming Toyota Corolla. Mejia’s legs were broken and the girl’s spinal cord was severed. She is a student at Cherry Valley school in Petaluma.

Police found drugs and a loaded gun in Chandradas’ car.

In September, he pleaded guilty to 18 criminal counts including vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and with gross negligence, possession for sale of drugs and driving on a suspended license.

He faced up to 28 years behind bars. He was sentenced by Judge Gary Medvigy.

Chandradas has prior felony convictions for violence, weapons and drugs, prosecutors said.

He admitted faking a mental illness after his arrest, causing proceedings to be suspended while he was evaluated by two mental health experts. He said he did it to try to avoid trial, prosecutors said.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.