MAN SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON FOR KILLING 19-YEAR-OLD GERMAN TOURIST WHILE DRIVING HIGH ON METHAMPHETAMINE

Case # 17WF1682

Date: June 8, 2018

MAN SENTENCED TO 10 YEARS IN PRISON FOR KILLING 19-YEAR-OLD GERMAN TOURIST WHILE DRIVING HIGH ON METHAMPHETAMINE

SANTA ANA, Calif. – A man was sentenced today to 10 years in prison for vehicular manslaughter after killing a 19-year-old German tourist while driving high on methamphetamine in Seal Beach.

Defendant	Charges	Sentence
Matthew Ryan Wood, 25, Seal Beach	Pleaded guilty on Sept. 15, 2017, to the following felony counts: Gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated Sale / transportation of a controlled substance Possession of a controlled substance with firearm	10 years in state prison

Circumstances of the Case

• On Dec. 9, 2016, at approximately 2:00 p.m., the defendant drove eastbound on Westminster Avenue in the city of Seal Beach.
• Wood swerved over the center median into the westbound lanes of Westminster Avenue and collided head-on with a Kia Sedona.
• The driver of the Sedona, 19-year-old German tourist Lisa Schelborn, was pronounced dead at the scene.
• The defendant was transported to UC Irvine Medical Center in critical condition.
• At the time of the collision, Wood was driving under the influence of methamphetamine, attempting to transport methamphetamine for sale, and was in possession of a firearm while carrying a controlled substance.
• Seal Beach Police Department investigated this case and arrested the defendant on Aug. 9, 2017.

Prosecutor: Senior Deputy District Attorney Dan Feldman, Homicide Unit.