SRJC Coach Charged In Crash That Killed East Bay 21-Year-Old

SONOMA COUNTY, CA – A Santa Rosa Junior College football coach has been charged with the murder of a Sonoma State University student in an alleged DUI vehicle collision Sunday night. Logologoa Taumaloto Tevaseu, 35, of Santa Rosa, was driving a 2006 Dodge Ram south on Lakeville Highway east of Petaluma around 9:10 p.m. when he crossed double yellow lines and collided head-on with a 2015 Toyota Corolla.

Three other vehicles then collided with the Toyota or each other, causing minor to moderate injuries to the occupants.

The driver of the Toyota was pronounced dead at the scene. She has been identified as Paulette Geronimo Quiba, 21, of Oakley, according to the California Highway Patrol. Quiba was a business studies student at SSU.

Immediately after the collision, Tevaseu, a defensive line coach with the SRJC Bear Cubs football team, refused to take a blood draw, CHP officials said.

Tevaseu is being held without bail in the Sonoma County Jail. His next court appearance is scheduled for early next week.

The Sonoma County District Attorney's Office on Tuesday, Nov. 7 charged Tevaseu with murder with malice and enhancements alleging he was previously convicted of DUI within the last 10 years and he caused great bodily injury to Quiba. He also is charged with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and two counts of felony DUI.

Tevaseu's previous DUI occurred on Oct. 20, 2011. He was convicted on Feb. 29, 2012 and was served 10 days in jail, according to court records.

The DUI allegations in the complaint filed this week also allege he refused to take a chemical test after Sunday's collision, and his blood-alcohol level was 0.15 percent and more.

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Tevaseu did not enter a plea in his initial court appearance and Patch was not able to immediately reach the DA's office nor Tevaseu's attorney for comment Thursday afternoon.

Sonoma State University on its Facebook page said Quiba began her studies in the fall of 2015. She was junior and was taking pre-business courses, a proud member of the Phi Sigma Sigma sorority, the Accounting Forum and the Filipino American Association.

Quiba also was a staff member of Join Us in Making Progress where she was the Days of Service coordinator and part of the Sustainability Coalition last year.

"She will be missed by her friends and classmates as well as by the faculty and staff who were lucky enough to know her," the SSU statement read.

Bay City News Service contributed to this report.

Jail booking photo via Sonomasheriff.org