A traffic accident on Sunday, September 7 in Napa County, California, has shocked the Latino community. Six farm workers, all of Mexican origin, died after the minivan in which they were traveling ran off the road and crashed into a tree.
The driver, identified as Norberto Celerino, 53, also a day laborer, was formally charged with multiple counts, including six counts of murder.
Norberto Celerino had a criminal record
PRESS RELEASE: Napa County District Attorney Charges Stockton Resident Norberto Celerino with Six Counts of Homicide pic.twitter.com/6kgVHds2l7
– Napa County District Attorney’s Office (@NapaCountyDA) September 9, 2025
What has generated the most outrage is the defendant’s criminal record.
According to the Napa County District Attorney’s Office, Norberto Celerino had three prior DUI convictions.
Two of those sentences were handed down between August 2020 and September 2024 in San Joaquin County.
The third occurred more than a decade ago, showing a dangerous pattern of recidivism.
At the time of the accident, Norberto Celerino was on probation precisely for these infractions.
This has been key to the prosecutors’ request for aggravating factors in the current indictment.
They were all farm workers
UPDATE: Crash of minivan that killed 6 passengers on Pope Valley Road is 3rd DUI crash in last 6 months in Napa County leading to murder probe by @CHP_Napa. Norberto Celerino, 53, held on suspicion of murder & DUI. 4,5,6 p.m. https://t. co/7Y9YXVfYwS
– Henry K. Lee (@henrykleeKTVU) September 8, 2025
The tragic crash occurred when Norberto Celerino was driving a Toyota Sienna with seven passengers on board, all farm workers like himself.
The minivan went off the road and ended up violently impacting a tree.
Six people died at the scene of the accident and both the driver and the sole survivor were transported with serious injuries to a local hospital, where they remain under observation.
The Napa District Attorney’s Office has filed stiff charges:
Six counts of murder
Six counts of gross vehicular manslaughter under the influence of alcohol
One count of DUI with serious injury
If all charges are proven, Celerino could face life imprisonment.
Mourning in the California countryside
The case has generated deep sadness among Northern California farming communities.
Various migrant rights organizations have denounced that farmworkers often must rely on peers with criminal records for transportation due to the lack of access to safe public transportation in rural areas.
Mexican authorities are already in contact with the families of the victims to coordinate the repatriation of the bodies.
Vigils are expected to be held in the coming days in honor of the deceased, whose names have not yet been publicly disclosed.
This case revives the debate about the control mechanisms for repeat DUI offenders in California.
As well as the urgent need for safe transportation measures for agricultural day laborers, many of whom are undocumented Hispanics who rely on these informal networks to reach their workplaces.
Seis personas murieron en el lugar del accidente y tanto el conductor como el único sobreviviente fueron trasladados con heridas graves a un hospital local
QuéOnnda.com
