Police: Drug use may be a factor in Hemet crash that left woman dead

Last Updated on June 11, 2019 by CCAR Staff

HEMET — Drug use may have played a role in a two-vehicle collision in Hemet that killed a 61-year-old woman, police said Monday.

The collision occurred about 6:40 p.m. Sunday at the intersection of Lyon and Commonwealth avenues, according to Hemet Police Department Sgt. Dan Reinbolt.

Officers learned that 53-year-old Todd Schmidt of San Jacinto was driving a 2005 Ford F-150 pickup truck east on Commonwealth Avenue and failed to stop at a stop sign at Lyon Avenue before colliding with a northbound 2017 Nissan Rogue SUV, Reinbolt said.

The woman driving the Nissan, Victoria Fleming of Hemet, suffered serious injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene, Reinbolt said.

“Schmidt suffered moderate injuries and was transported by ambulance to a local trauma center,” Reinbolt said. “Investigators believe that the use of illegal drugs and prescription medication may have been a factor in this collision and the investigation is continuing.”

No other injuries were reported.

The crash closed Lyon Avenue at Commonwealth for about four hours as police investigated.