Suspected Drunken Driver Plows Into 3 Teen Girls
RANCHO CUCAMONGA (CBSLA.com) — A suspected drunken driver lost control of his vehicle and plowed into three teenage girls walking home from school Wednesday in the Inland Empire.
CBS2's Greg Mills reported the victims -- two freshmen and a sophomore -- had just left Alta Loma High School at around 2:30 p.m. when the vehicle jumped a curb and struck them.
Resident Wayne Holland said he heard the crash and came running out.
"...A loud boom that shook my house. I thought someone had run into my house or one of the vehicles was in front of my house. I came out and there was kids on the ground," Holland said.
"One girl was pinned between the car and tree, and she was pinned partly under the car. I had my son and a few other guys lift the car off of her and pulled her free," he said.
The girl pinned under the car was later identified as 14-year-old Ashley Arangua, KCAL9's Rob Schmitt reported.
Arangua's mother was waiting to pick her up in a nearby parking lot, and witnessed the accident take place.
All three girls suffered major injuries and were transported to a hospital, police said. One of the victims was released later that night.
CBS2/KCAL9 spoke with Arangua's family outside the hospital Wednesday night. Her father, Mike, said she is severely injured but will recover. Arangua suffered a broken femur and pelvis, along with neck fractures.
"She's doing ok," Mike Arangua said. "It happened so fast. She doesn't remember exactly what happened, just being in there, after."
San Bernardino Sheriff's Department investigators say Cory Holker, 29, was driving drunk when he tried to pass another car and lost control of the vehicle. The car jumped a curb and hit the girls.
Holland said Holker was trying to flee after the accident but his son kept him there until police arrived.
Officers administered a sobriety test on Holker at the scene. He was arrested and faces a charge of felony DUI.
According to his father, Holker called from jail, saying he helped neighbors free Arangua from underneath the car.
Holker works as a pizza deliveryman for Papa John's.
According to his father, Holker has had trouble with drugs and alcohol in the past.
