Wrongway Driver In 14 Freeway Pileup That Injured 11 Charged With DUI
SAN FERNANDO (CBSLA.com) — The wrongway driver blamed for a nine-vehicle accident that injured 11 people on the Antelope Valley Freeway was charged today with four counts of DUI causing injury.
Rick Allen Walker, 54, is accused of driving a mile in the wrong direction on the 14 Freeway Monday afternoon before his pickup plowed head-on into a Dodge 2500 truck at 85 mph, the California Highway Patrol said.
The crash triggered a massive pileup on the northbound freeway in Agua Dulce. Three were critically injured.
According to the CHP's accident report, the driver of the Dodge pickup was 48-year-old Fernando Cedeno of Lancaster. Cedeno was airlifted to Antelope Valley Hospital, where he was treated for a compound fracture of his right arm.
Ashley Hauser, 34, of Lancaster, was also airlifted to Antelope Valley after suffering a dislocated shoulder and abdominal bleeding.
Fifty-three-year-old David Becker, of Palmdale, suffered a broken back and was transported to Henry Mayo Hospital in Valencia.
CHP said Walker was given a sobriety test at the scene.
He was airlifted to Antelope Valley Hospital and treated for lacerations. Walker was then arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of methamphetamine and booked at CHP's Newhall station, according to City News Service.
The Canyon Country resident was arraigned on Wednesday at the San Fernando Courthouse, where he pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Walker's bail was set at $430,000.
He is due back in court on June 27.
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