A 33-year-old Turlock man is behind bars after California Highway Patrol officers say he sped an Audi SUV south on Sycamore Street near Delhi, crossed into oncoming traffic, and slammed head-on into a Chevrolet Equinox carrying an elderly Delhi couple, killing the 83-year-old woman inside. Officers say the driver then ran from the wreck and was later found hiding in a nearby orchard.
The crash happened just after 9:45 a.m. Thursday near the intersection of Sycamore Street and Bloss Avenue, south of Delhi, according to CBS Sacramento. The station reports that an 84-year-old Delhi man was driving the Equinox north on Sycamore Street at roughly 40 mph, with his 83-year-old wife riding as a passenger, when the southbound Audi crossed into the northbound lanes and struck their vehicle head-on, per the California Highway Patrol.
Jose Perez Hernandez left the Audi after the crash and ran from the scene, according to the same report. Officers tracked him down and found him hiding in a nearby orchard before arresting him. The California Highway Patrol determined that Hernandez was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the crash, and he was booked into jail on suspicion of DUI and hit-and-run, per the outlet’s account.
Victim Died at Hospital, Husband Suffered Moderate Injuries
Both occupants of the Chevrolet Equinox were taken to hospitals following the crash. The 83-year-old woman died after being taken to a hospital, per officers, while her 84-year-old husband suffered moderate injuries, the report states. Hernandez himself was also taken to a hospital, according to the same account. Her official identification and the survivor’s current medical condition remain open questions, as does the exact blood alcohol concentration authorities recorded for Hernandez.
Crash Lands on Day One of Regional DUI Crackdown
The fatal collision came on the very first day of an intensified DUI enforcement push the Merced Police Department announced would run from Wednesday through Labor Day, with agencies deploying additional saturation patrols as part of a national campaign against impaired driving. The timing underscores a persistent local problem: the 2024 Merced County Local Road Safety Plan found that driving under the influence was a factor in 32% of all traffic collisions recorded across the county over a five-year study period. Merced County had also ranked 4th out of 105 similarly sized California jurisdictions for total alcohol-involved fatal and injury collisions in a 2021 evaluation by the California Office of Traffic Safety, which reported 78 victims killed or injured that year…