UPDATED: JURUPA VALLEY: DUI suspect, who left 14-year-old girl behind after fleeing major-injury wreck, arrested

CORRECTED: An earlier version of this report indicated the 14-year-old girl left trapped inside the vehicle was the suspect’s daughter, which was not the case.

UPDATE: April 22, 9 p.m.

JURUPA VALLEY – Several people were injured this morning in an early-morning, DUI-related, two-vehicle traffic collision. The DUI wreck happened Saturday, April 22, at the intersection of Camino Real and Limonite Avenue in Jurupa Valley.

Two victims, including a 14-year-old girl, were left trapped inside one of the two vehicles and had to be cut free using the ‘Jaws of Life.” Loudlabs News photo

Two people who were inside the DUI driver’s vehicle were left trapped with major injuries inside the mangled wreckage of the vehicle. The driver of the vehicle that was being driven while under the influence fled the scene on foot, leaving the fourteen-year-old girl and another victim behind in the wrecked vehicle.

Sheriff’s deputies later apprehended and arrested the man, who was identified as Donald Derose, 22, of Riverside. After his arrest, deputies booked Derose at the Robert Presley Detention Center on numerous charges, including suspicion of driving under the influence, DUI traffic collision resulting in injury, hit and run resulting in injury, child endangerment and violation of probation.

Emergency first responders rushed to the scene of the major-injury traffic collision just after midnight, when Riverside County emergency dispatchers received several 911 calls from citizens reporting the major-injury traffic collision, Riverside Sheriff’s Sergeant Christian Dekker explained in a written press release after the incident and arrest.

Both vehicles were heavily damaged in the DUI-related crash. Loudlabs News photo

Sixteen firefighters from three engine companies and one truck company responded to the wreck, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Public Information Officer April Newman. They were assisted by a paramedic squad.

When firefighters and deputies arrived, they found a total of eight victims suffering a variety of injuries, including two victims who were trapped inside the vehicle that Derose fled from. Both the trapped victims, including the teenage girl were suffering from major traumatic injuries.

Based on the number of potential victims inside the two vehicles, five ground ambulances were initially requested to the scene.

Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff’s Jurupa Valley Station immediately began an investigation into the cause of the multiple-injury collision.

Within minutes, additional deputies started to arrive in the area and they began to search for the suspect who fled, while the Jurupa Valley Fire department worked to extricate the two trapped victims.

Firefighters use the “Jaws of Life” to free two trapped victims. Loudlabs News photo

Firefighters used the “Jaws of Life” to extricate the trapped pair and updated they had successfully extricated both of the trapped victims just before 1 a.m.

Both were transported by ground ambulance to area hospitals with major injuries. One additional victim was transported to an area hospital with minor injuries.

Firefighter/paramedics and American Medical Response medics evaluated and treated five other victims at the scene. All declined further medical treatment.

During the investigation, witnesses told investigating deputies that a vehicle with three occupants, including the DUI driver, Derose, ran the red light at the intersection and smashed into a second vehicle. There were six occupants inside the second vehicle.

The driver of the vehicle which ran the red light and caused the accident, who was later identified as Derose, fled the scene of the collision on foot, leaving his two seriously injured passengers behind.

Firefighters work to extircate a 14-year-old girl who was left trapped in one of the two vehicles. Loudlabs News photo

One of passengers Derose left behind was later determined to be a fourteen-year-old girl. It was not immediately known who the second victim was that was left injured and trapped in Derose’s wrecked vehicle or what that person’s relationship was to Derose.

Both passengers from Derose’s vehicle were transported to local hospitals and treated for their injuries, which were described as major.

Deputies eventually located Derose nearby and conducted a DUI investigation, at which time they determined the man was operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of alcohol.

The area of the crash was shut down to traffic for several hours, while deputies conducted their investigation, which Is active and ongoing.

Anyone who has additional information regarding this incident or who witnessed the traffic collision is urged to contact Corporal Spykstra at (951) 955-2600 or after hours reporting at (951) 776-1099. Callers can refer to incident file number JV171120001 and can remain anonymous. Citizens may also submit a tip using the Sheriff’s CrimeTips online form.

Click any image to view full-size gallery.

 

Contact the writer: [email protected]

trevor main

Trevor Montgomery runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News and Anza Valley Outlook and also writes for Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg and breaking his back in an off-duty accident.

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations, including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center and Lake Elsinore Station, along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 26 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and has 13 children and 12 – soon to be 13 – grandchildren.

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