A 50-year-old California woman faces a raft of criminal charges including a count of felony driving under the influence for allegedly striking and severely injuring two pedestrians in Long Beach on the afternoon of March 24 and then fleeing the scene. The woman was arraigned on March 27 and is being held at a Los Angeles County detention facility. Her bail has been set at $100,000 according to media reports. She could be sent to a state prison for as long as nine years if she is convicted on all charges.
Hit-and-run drunk driving crash
The alleged drunk driving accident took place on Del Amo Boulevard in the vicinity of Locust Avenue at approximately 12:40 p.m. According to a Long Beach Police Department report, the woman’s Dodge minivan struck two men who were in the process of unhitching towing equipment. The minivan is then said to have left the scene of the accident. Officers say that they located the minivan and apprehended its driver a short time later. A toxicology test taken at the scene allegedly revealed the woman’s blood alcohol concentration to be .20%. This is more than double California’s .08% legal driving limit.
Previous DUI in 2012
The woman faces a felony DUI charge because she caused serious injury or death and a records check revealed that she was convicted of driving drunk in 2012. She has also been charged with leaving the scene of an accident. The two men she allegedly struck were transported by emergency response workers to an area hospital. One of the men suffered injuries that left him in critical condition according to a LBPD representative.<
Felony DUI defense
The penalties for felony drunk driving are severe in California, but prosecutors may be willing to reduce them substantially when defendants are willing to plead guilty to a lesser charge. If you have been charged with felony DUI, an experienced criminal defense attorney may advise you to accept a plea offer if the evidence against you is likely to lead to a conviction in court. However, attorneys could advise you to reject a negotiated settlement if the police officers involved may have acted improperly or your toxicology test results could be unreliable.