Sheriff's Lieutenant Arrested for DUI in Highway 154 Collision
Photo: SBCFD
A Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office employee was involved in a serious injury collision on SR – 154 near Lake Cachuma on Saturday evening, September 14, 2019.
The Buellton office of the California Highway Patrol responded to the accident. Javier Antunez, an off-duty Custody lieutenant assigned to the Main Jail, was driving one of the vehicles involved in the collision and was placed under arrest for driving a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol and causing injury.
Antunez has been employed with the Sheriff’s Office since 1999. He has been placed on administrative leave pending an internal investigation.
Update by edhat staff
Three vehicles collided on Highway 154 Saturday evening causing seven people to be injured.
At 7:15 p.m., Santa Barbara County firefighters responded to the scene approximately 3/4 of a mile east of the Lake Cachuma entrance. Crews discovered three vehicles involved in a head-on collision.
Public Information Officer Mike Eliason reports a BMW traveling eastbound on Highway 154 two occupants, a male and female, drifted into oncoming traffic and collided head-on with a Toyota Tacoma driving westbound with four occupants. Another vehicle that was behind the accident, a Jeep with one female occupant, struck both vehicles.
There was a total of 7 patients, one with critical injuries. A CalStar helicopter landed on Highway 154 and flew the critical patient to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital while three ambulances transported three more patients with moderate injuries to the same hospital. There were three other patients that suffered minor injuries who declined transport to the hospital and were treated at the scene, said Eliason.
Highway 154 was shut down in both directions for a time during the medical response and investigation.
Reported by Roger the Scanner Guy
Highway 154 3/4ths a mile East of Lake Cachuma.
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132 Comments
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Sep 20, 2019 08:07 AMI want to see his mug shot! Come on Bill Brown, let’s see the “lieutenant” mugshot. CIVILIAN LIVES MATTER. Blue lives matter, but so do civilian lives.
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Sep 18, 2019 12:10 PMYour decision to drink alcohol is
Your decision to toxify yourself is
Your decision to be irresponsible is
Your decision to become impaired is
Your decision to risk losing your life is
Your decision to gamble with others' lives is
ultimately your decision to LOSE BIG
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Sep 18, 2019 02:24 PMHopefully Joyce Dudley doesn't sweep this one under the rug.
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Sep 18, 2019 07:42 AMLot's of people from every walk of life get behind the wheel after drinking not sure to label someone a POS for it is really that appropriate. I'm personally paranoid after even one drink and will not drive for at least one hour. But I'm sure there are those who get behind the wheel right after a drink are two or three and have this false sense of confidence in driving ability. A very foolish and in some cases deadly choice and eventually they learn the hard way.
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Sep 17, 2019 01:19 PMAll this anti-cop sentiment is ridiculous, and all the hate is over the top. You obviously don't know Javier or his family. I've known them all since they were in diapers. Javier is a quality human being and his parents are the sweetest people on the planet. Javier made a bad mistake. You can bet he will be dealt with harshly. But for one commenter to call him a POS is totally inaccurate. He obviously doesn't know him. Bad things do happen to good people, and it can happen to anyone. Remember that next time you're sitting in the jury box....
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Sep 19, 2019 08:16 AMI love your comment @4:04 am, so true. I agree with you too Roger.
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Sep 19, 2019 04:04 AMDrunk drivers are not "quality human beings"
Causing an accident while driving intoxicated is NOT a matter of "bad things do happen to good people". That describes the four occupants of the car this person ran into head-on.
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Sep 18, 2019 02:26 PMWell said! Never mind the fact that those who caused the accident are both law enforcement officers. What kind of background are they doing on these people prior to hiring them?!
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Sep 18, 2019 02:26 PMWell said! Never mind the fact that those who caused the accident are both law enforcement officers. What kind of background are they doing on these people prior to hiring them?!
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Sep 18, 2019 12:13 PMI would say "bad things happen to good people" is inaccurate. "Good people do stupid things" maybe more accurate. The thing about knowingly driving drunk...a lot of people aren't doing it knowingly. Because they are impaired and don't realize they are impaired (aka, they are being stupid)
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Sep 18, 2019 06:20 AMAnyone who drives drunk knowing it is wrong is a POS, ANYONE.
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Sep 17, 2019 06:58 PMI was the person who called him a POS. HE, no one else made his decision to drive drunk, on 154 of all highways and endanger lives. I happen to be a staunch supporter of LEO's . I hold them (as they do too), to a higher level of standards- It's not a "job", if you are in Public Safety, it's a way of living your life. Who knows how many other times he did this or other "bad behavior" that would tarnish the Profession... I am sure his family are nice people, HE FAILED and should face SEVERE consequences for putting a black eye on LEO's in general.
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Sep 17, 2019 06:33 PMYou read my mind
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Sep 17, 2019 06:19 PMAgreed, there is absolutely no excuse.
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Sep 17, 2019 06:18 PMTotally makes him a POS. Sorry, he injured numerous people.
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Sep 17, 2019 06:18 PMAgree 100%
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Sep 17, 2019 06:17 PMAgreed completely
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Sep 17, 2019 04:09 PMscotts - plenty of things wrong. driving drunk is absolutely not one of them, ever. There is zero justification for a drunk driver (contrary to the commenter above) z e r o.
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Sep 17, 2019 04:06 PMYou never did anything wrong? Guess not. I said what he did was bad. It's just the pile-on by the sanctimonious that bothers me
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Sep 17, 2019 04:03 PMDoes this make him a good person though? There is zero excuse for someone, anyone, getting behind the wheel and driving drunk. Period.
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Sep 17, 2019 04:02 PMFix your program to eliminate duplicates, Edhat....
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Sep 17, 2019 03:58 PMStill does not make him a POS
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Sep 17, 2019 03:56 PMDoesn't make him a POS, which he is not.
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Sep 17, 2019 03:45 PMBad things do in fact happen to good people, and that would be the case if this person didn't decide, on his own, to get behind the wheel of a vehicle, when they knew they shouldn't, drunk, causing some serious injuries. I am all for LEO, but there is really no defending this bad decision to drive while drunk - no matter how good a person he may be.
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Sep 17, 2019 03:09 PMGetting a DUI doesn't "happen" to someone.
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Sep 17, 2019 02:08 PMSeems inaccurate to call this a bad thing that happened to a good person. Like he was unlucky or something. It was his passenger and 5 victims that were unlucky.
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Sep 17, 2019 12:38 PM2 identical crashes in the same place on consecutive days. that section of 154, CalTrans ought to put divots or bumps between the two lanes that indicate that you are crossing over. Hopefully that will alert the driver and perhaps avoid some of these terrible accidents.
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Sep 18, 2019 05:22 AMThe road is not the problem, it's the inattentive and intoxicated. Cant fix stupid.
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Sep 17, 2019 01:24 PMOops, that's a very good idea which is already being used. They're called rumble strips and you can see and hear them on lots of new paving jobs. One here is HWY 101 through Goleta. They weren't using Bott's dots or RPMs (Raised Pavement Markers ) because they get ruined during snow removal or rock debris removal. Now grinding and putting RPMs in divots for the same reason. Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a maintenance program doing this. And we call them wake ups as they're for drowsy drivers. They won't stop stupid...which this Lt. definitely was.
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Sep 17, 2019 10:44 AMI never drive on that ridiculous highway and I'm sure he will be dealt with swiftly, so you all can put away your pitchforks because I'm sure all that you guy's have to protect yourselves anyway's.
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Sep 17, 2019 10:43 AMDo the Sheriffs and Probation Dept. think they are above the law? Do they think they can self-righteously ruin the businesses, families, and lives of wrongdoers but then get loaded after they clock out? Absolutely not. The SBSO needs more accountability and these fools need to lose their jobs and have the book thrown at them.
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Sep 17, 2019 06:34 PMThey definitely think they’re above the law. It’s ridiculous.
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Sep 17, 2019 10:19 AMAt that time of night. I would think they were coming from the casino. They should have a DUI check point at the exit of the casino.
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Sep 17, 2019 07:23 AMHope all 7 recover from their injuries quickly, and they learn from their near fatal mistakes.
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Sep 16, 2019 10:43 PMFor the record, Javier Antunez’s passenger, Esther K. Trejo, is a Supervising Probation Officer for the Probation Department. Why she got in the car with a drunk fellow law enforcement officer is beyond me... and she supervises employees/and or probationers? Stupidity at its finest. What are you gonna do about this JOYCE DUDLEY?! Or better yet, what is the Probation department going to do about this? Sweep it under the rug along with the 1/2 pound of cannabis that went missing from their evidence room? Public Records Act people, the information is there... you just gotta ask for it. Corruption left and right.
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Sep 18, 2019 02:34 PMLets not forget how much it's going to cost tax payers to clean up their mess.
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Sep 17, 2019 08:33 AMHow much does this county official passenger cost tax payers each year, who allegedly allowed a drunk driver and fellow officer to continue driving on public roads? Esther Trejo Takembaiyee
DEP PROBATION OFFICER SUP (2018) TOTAL: $172, 137 ---
Regular pay: $98,944.00
Overtime pay: $0.00
Other pay: $2,218.59
Total pay: $101,162.59
Benefits: $70,975.18
Total pay & benefits: $172,137.77 (Source: Transparent California)
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Sep 16, 2019 08:31 PMWhenever I think about using 154 I ask myself a simple question - is it worth it? It has gotten that bad. Carma...
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Sep 16, 2019 07:33 PM154 Good spot for a DUI check point.
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Sep 16, 2019 05:27 PMThat POS should lose his job AND retirement benefits immediately. (PERIOD)
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Sep 17, 2019 06:37 PMSadly, that might be the case. They retire at 55 with a full pension.
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Sep 17, 2019 06:24 PMI think his passenger should lose her job with the Probation Department as well. I mean, it was her car after all that he crashed so she handed a fellow law enforcement officer her keys while they were both intoxicated? They cost taxpayers so much and everyone feels sorry for them. Why?! They brought this upon themselves!
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Sep 17, 2019 08:40 AMProbably can retire with current benefits before he is convicted. They will have to put him on paid admin leave until then. Public safety unions have strong protections for their members.
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Sep 16, 2019 05:19 PMWe live right by Cottage and can watch the air ambulance come in from our living room window. This happens WAY too often and I swear at least 50% of the time it's coming in (which is usually at least once a day), I go to EdHat to find that it's ANOTHER crash on the 154. This is seriously insane. I refuse to even drive it anymore - the risk is too high. A death or seriously bodily injury every day seems way too much to risk it. I'm a good driver, but it seems others are too drunk or distracted or road raged out to care about others' lives. I am sickened!!!
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Sep 17, 2019 08:37 AMShould only happen two times a week based on the EIR written for the helipad project by Cottage. But of course it happens almost everyday once they built it. If you build it, they will come.
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