A Compton driver who ran a red light and triggered a deadly chain-reaction crash will serve six months in jail for killing a 15-year-old Lakewood High student who was sitting at a Long Beach bus stop. Under a plea deal, he will also spend three years on probation and complete court-ordered safety programs aimed at curbing reckless driving. The victim, Carlos Ramirez, was struck after a car jumped the curb and careened onto the sidewalk on June 11, 2025.
According to the Long Beach Post, 20-year-old Jacob Nicholas Bustillos of Compton agreed in late January to plead no contest and accept a deal that calls for six months behind bars and three years of supervised probation. Court records reviewed by the outlet show the plea also requires him to complete a reckless driving intervention program and a two-day program that includes visits to a hospital and a morgue. The Long Beach Post reported that Bustillos surrendered on Feb. 26 at the downtown Long Beach courthouse to begin serving his jail term.
Investigators say the crash happened around 3 p.m. when Bustillos' 2010 Infiniti G37 ran a red light at Carson Street and Palo Verde Avenue, slammed into a Toyota Prius, then rolled onto the northwest sidewalk and into the bus bench where Ramirez was seated. The teen, identified as 15-year-old Carlos Ramirez of Lakewood, was taken to a hospital and later died. Friends and family later created a roadside memorial at the scene and launched a GoFundMe to help cover funeral costs, according to Long Beach Local News.
Carlos’ mother, Monica Gonzalez, told the Long Beach Post she has forgiven Bustillos and hopes the punishment will “serve as a warning to others.” She said the family is still deep in grief and that no sentence can bring her son back.
Legal details and what comes next
Prosecutors initially charged Bustillos with one count of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. If the case had gone to trial and he had been convicted, he could have faced up to six years in prison. Instead, the district attorney’s office negotiated a no-contest plea that brings a guaranteed stretch of jail time along with a lengthy probation term. Bustillos is scheduled to return to court in August for formal sentencing related to his probation.
Why speeding matters
Local reporting noted that speed appeared to be a factor in the crash, a stark reminder that reckless driving can turn routine waits at bus stops and walks near schools into fatal encounters. Across the country, speeding was involved in roughly 28% of deadly crashes in 2022, highlighting how common and dangerous it is, according to a Pew Research Center summary of federal data.
