An elderly man charged with felony DUI causing injury, resulting from an incident in which the man drove his vehicle into an elementary school and caused a young boy to lose a leg, has pleaded not guilty, as reported by the City News Service from Indio, California. M.P., 83, of Palm Desert, was also charged with a sentence-enhancing allegation of causing great bodily injury.
The incident occurred on October 23, 2013, when M.P. drove through a fence and into the Lincoln Elementary School. The flying debris struck and badly injured A.G., 10 years old at the time. M.P. entered the courtroom bound by a wheelchair and was released on his own recognizance. The next court date is scheduled for July 29. According to Riverside County District Attorney's Office spokesman, M.P. must refrain from driving, drinking alcohol, submit to chemical testing, and refrain from visiting any bars or liquor stores.
At approximately 9:50 a.m. M.P. was driving his Chevrolet Cruze south on Portola Avenue when he "mistakenly pressed the accelerator rather than the brake pedal when
approaching traffic stopped at an intersection.'" Instead of realizing his error, he then "pressed harder on the accelerator" according to the arrest warrant.
M.P.'s vehicle struck another vehicle, then he traveled onto the sidewalk and hit a traffic signal before crashing through the school fence and coming to a stop. After being hit with flying debris, A.G. was airlifted to a hospital and had to have his right leg removed just below his knee. No one else was hurt in the accident.
The Riverside County Sheriff's Department said that M.P. remained at the scene. A blood alcohol test resulted in a 0.04 percent reading, which is below the state limit of 0.08 percent. However, Sheriff's Deputy J. C. wrote M.P.'s "actions throughout the events of the collision, combined with his measured BAC, led me to believe that alcohol contributed to a mental impairment, making him unable to operate a motor vehicle in a safe manner."
The attorney representing M.P., told reporters, "I've never seen someone arrested and prosecuted for a DUI where they had no evidence at the scene that he was impaired. They did no test, no field sobriety test, because they didn't suspect he had used any alcohol. He's very concerned about it. Certainly he feels horrible about the result of the accident. Nothing he can do about that now. He regrets everything that happened..."
A.G.'s mother sued M.P. for negligence in April. Seeking unspecified damages, the suit stated that M.P. was "unfit and/or incompetent to operate the subject vehicle given he was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident."
A.G.'s mother commented to the press, "It's very emotional for me. I'm trying not to cry. We're just hoping for justice and closure for our family…It states very clearly there are multiple witnesses, including a firefighter, that said he was slouched in the chair and his speech was impaired so there is evidence that he was drinking."