Last Updated on June 10, 2022 by CCAR Staff
A convicted DUI driver was arrested in Rialto after he killed a Colton mother of three in a drunken driving accident that also left her husband hospitalized, police said Thursday, June 9.
On Wednesday, June 8, Rialto police officers responded to a two-vehicle crash in the 300 block of North Riverside Avenue around 9:15 p.m., the Rialto Police Department said in a news release.
A black Mercedes C63 driven by 38-year-old Richard Madrid of Fontana was found to have collided into a Chevrolet HHR driven by a Colton man and his wife, 40-year-old Priscilla Hernandez of Colton, police said. Hernandez and her husband were taken to a hospital where she died of her injuries, authorities said.
The husband was hospitalized with “significant injuries,” but was said to be in stable condition, according to the Police Department.
An investigation indicated that Madrid was driving north on Riverside Avenue at a high-rate of speed and the Chevrolet was driving east on Third Street before Madrid struck them at the adjoining intersection, Rialto police said. Investigators had preliminary evidence that indicated Madrid was drunk when the crash happened, authorities said.
Madrid was taken to a hospital with minor injuries and then was booked on suspicion of murder, police said. His bail was set at $2.5 million, authorities said.
It was determined that Madrid had four DUI related convictions and was previously on felony probation out of Riverside County from 2016 through 2019 for a DUI conviction with three or more prior convictions within the past ten years, the Police Department said.
“This is yet another tragic example of what happens when a person simply doesn’t care about our State’s DUI laws,” said Rialto Police Chief Mark P. Kling said in a statement.
It wasn’t immediately clear if Madrid was represented by an attorney.
Anyone who may have information about the incident can contact Sgt. Dan Smith at 909-644-6025.
