Students Mourn Teen Killed In Marin DUI Crash

MARIN COUNTY, CA — About 100 students, families and school staff gathered in the Rancho Cotate High School quad Friday evening to honor a teen killed in a fatal April 11 Novato crash.

Many of the teens at the memorial wore the number 25 that Niko Vargas Ortiz once wore on his Cougar football jersey.

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Six days earlier, the community learned Vargas Ortiz had died in a Novato crash that authorities say involved alcohol.

On Friday, family, teachers, and emotional support dogs stood with students as the crowd mourned Vargas Ortiz and the four other teenagers injured in the crash, the Press Democrat reported.

The vigil marked the emotional end of a week of mourning. School officials said all students involved in the crash were either current or former students in the district.

Days before the collision, students had taken part in the “Every 15 Minutes” program, a two-day campus initiative designed to show the consequences of impaired driving. The timing sharpened the impact for many students who had just seen the simulation become reality, the Press Democrat reported.

Emergency personnel received several 911 calls around 1 a.m. April 11 reporting a single-vehicle crash at San Marin Drive and Simmons Lane in Novato. Responders arrived and found a car that had struck a utility pole, police said.

Five teenagers, ages 16 to 18, were taken to the hospital after the crash. Vargas Ortiz died from his injuries, while the others remain in serious or critical condition, including the 17-year-old driver, whom police suspect was driving under the influence of alcohol.

On Friday, “Notes to Niko” adorned a memorial wall where students remembered Vargas Ortiz amid his photograph and football jersey, the Press Democrat reported.

Four of the teens attended El Camino and Rancho Cotate high schools, and the fifth had previously been enrolled in the Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District.

District officials said the community remained “heartbroken” and confirmed grief counselors would be available across campuses to support students and staff as they process the loss.