Family, friends hold candlelight vigil to remember the Mooneys
Mar 25, 2025
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) -- On Tuesday, emotions were high as those who knew Max and Desiree Mooney gathered in remembrance.
More than 100 people gathered for the candlelight vigil, held in a vacant lot across the street from where the fatal crash happened on Stockdale Highway and Coffee Road.
Prayers were said and moments of silence were held, showing just how many lives Max and Desiree Mooney touched.
Faythe Blythe, a nearby neighbor to the deadly intersection, came to the vigil to show support for the family. Blythe says that this intersection is dangerous, and she has been calling police about speeding drivers for a year.
"If they try to get me off the line, the last thing I always say is somebody's going to get killed out here. Well…okay, two people just did," said Blythe.
Max and Desiree Mooney were 30-years-old before the fatal crash ended their lives on Stockdale Highway and Coffee Road. High school sweethearts, they graduated from Highland High School in 2013 and were together for 10 years.
They were married for three of them.
After a 5-year stint of living in San Diego where Max Mooney trained to become an electrician, they moved back to Bakersfield to start a family.
Unfortunately, those dreams didn't come true.
The lyft they were taking was hit by another car, killing both of them. The alleged driver, 21-year-old Anabell Correa, was arraigned in court on Tuesday.
Anabell Correa is charged with eight felonies; two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, two counts of driving under the influence causing bodily injury, and two counts of DUI above a 0.08% with bodily injury.
She is also charged with two infractions, including driving without a license and failing to stop at a red light/stop sign.
Correa has no bail set and is back in court on April 3. ...read more read less