Mom Formally Charged With Murder In Daughter's DUI Death
RIVERSIDE (CBS) — The Riverside mother involved in a reported DUI crash in Temecula last week that killed one of her children and injured two others, was officially charged Monday with second-degree murder and DUI counts.
Karen Faye Honeycutt, 41, has multiple prior drunken driving convictions, according to the District Attorney's Office.
The collision last Wednesday afternoon on Vail Ranch Parkway, near Valentino Way, killed the woman's 9-year-old daughter, Chloe, seriously injured her 17-year-old son and left her 8-year-old son with minor injuries.
Along with the murder count, she's charged with DUI gross vehicular manslaughter and two counts of DUI with injuries, as well as sentence-enhancing great bodily injury allegations and allegations that multiple victims were involved.
Honeycutt faces 15 years to life in prison if convicted.
She's being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Southwest Detention Center in Murrieta, with arraignment expected this afternoon.
Honeycutt was headed east on Vail Ranch Parkway around 3 p.m., exceeding the speed limit ,when she lost control of her 1996 Jeep Cherokee. The vehicle struck the center median, collided with a tree and finally slammed into a concrete light pole, sheriff's officials said.
The impact threw Chloe and her 17-year-old brother -- who weren't wearing seatbelts -- into the road, according to the sheriff's department.
The other child was buckled in and was not ejected from the Jeep.
Honeycutt suffered minor injuries. Her daughter was rushed to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar, where she died less than an hour later, according to the coroner's office.
Honeycutt's alleged level of impairment was not disclosed.
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