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Drunk driver released on bail. He is accused of killing five people in accident in Fort Worth

The suspected drunk driver accused of killing five people in a serious crash on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth last week has been released on bail, court records show.

According to Tarrant County court records, 19-year-old Eduardo Gonzalez paid part of his $750,000 bail to a bail bond agency to secure his release on Friday.

Conditions of Gonzalez's bail require that he wear a SCRAM ankle bracelet that tests for alcohol and that a camera-equipped ignition interlock device be installed in any vehicle he drives. The Tarrant County Community Supervision and Corrections Department must inspect the ignition interlock device's installation and monitor its use, court documents say.

Fort Worth police said Gonzalez was driving a Chevy Camaro north on I-35W on Aug. 19 when he struck a sedan near the East Seminary Drive exit. The car he struck caught fire, killing all occupants, authorities said. Police said Gonzalez had containers of alcohol in his car and showed signs of intoxication. The results of a blood alcohol test are pending.

Official identification of the victims by the Tarrant County Coroner's Office could take weeks, but family members identified them as 48-year-old Willie Gunn, his girlfriend Amber Hopewell, and Hopewell's three children, ages 2, 4 and 9.

The indictment, which charges Gonzalez with five counts of intoxication manslaughter, also names Gunn and Hopewell among the victims and names the children as Elijah Caroll, Chrystale Cobbin and Amiyah Fisher. Amiyah was 2 years old, according to a GoFundMe account her father set up to raise money for funeral expenses.

Amiyah Lashae Rose Fisher, 2, was the youngest victim killed in a car crash on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth on August 19. Her mother, Amber Hopewell, Hopewell's boyfriend, Willie Gunn, and two other children also died in the crash.Amiyah Lashae Rose Fisher, 2, was the youngest victim killed in a car crash on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth on August 19. Her mother, Amber Hopewell, Hopewell's boyfriend, Willie Gunn, and two other children also died in the crash.

Amiyah Lashae Rose Fisher, 2, was the youngest victim killed in a car crash on Interstate 35W in Fort Worth on August 19. Her mother, Amber Hopewell, Hopewell's boyfriend, Willie Gunn, and two other children also died in the crash.

“We are all devastated by the loss of Amiyah Lashae Rose Fisher and were not prepared for the high cost of a funeral,” the toddler's father, Eddie Fisher, wrote in the GoFundMe description. “We want to give Amiyah the memorial she deserves, honor her beautiful memory, and say our final goodbyes to her.”

Members of Gunn's family said they wanted to know more about how the accident happened, including how the underage driver got alcohol.


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