California Senator Sabrina Cervantes Cited for DUI After Sacramento Crash — Denies Allegation, Cites Lab Results

California State Senator Sabrina Cervantes, who represents Riverside and parts of the Inland Empire, is pushing back hard after being cited on suspicion of DUI following a car crash just blocks from the State Capitol in Sacramento on Monday.

Cervantes, 37, says she was driving in downtown Sacramento when her sedan was T-boned by a large SUV. She was taken to a nearby hospital for treatment before police arrived on the scene. While at the hospital, Sacramento Police officers cited her for misdemeanor DUI, claiming she was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash.

In a strongly worded statement released Tuesday, Cervantes denied the accusation, saying, “I want to be clear: I did nothing wrong. The lab results I sought in the hospital show conclusively I had no alcohol in my system.” She also described the incident as “deeply distressing,” adding that she was “accosted by Sacramento Police Department officers” and “involuntarily detained for several hours.”

The Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office has not said whether any formal charges will be filed.

Cervantes, a Democrat, is a high-profile figure in state politics, having previously chaired the influential Latino Legislative Caucus and currently serving as a member of the LGBTQ Caucus. She is part of a prominent political family — her sister Clarissa serves on the Riverside City Council and previously faced two DUI charges, while their father Greg Cervantes is a former mayor of Coachella.

The incident adds to a recent string of DUI cases involving California lawmakers near the Capitol. Last year, then-state senators Dave Min and Wendy Carrillo faced similar accusations, with both cases drawing public scrutiny and political fallout.

Senator Cervantes emphasized that she holds herself to the “highest standard” and expects the situation to be resolved quickly and fairly.

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