Alleged Palm Springs hit-&-run DUI driver pleads not guilty
A motorist who allegedly struck and seriously injured a pedestrian in Palm Springs, then drove from the crash scene to his Cathedral City home with the injured man still atop his car, pleaded not guilty today to felony hit-and-run and DUI charges.
Police allege that Randy Lee Miller, 39, was under the influence of a central nervous system depressant at the time of the predawn Sept. 11 crash on Vista Chino, just east of Gene Autry Trail, near the area known as the wash.
Miller allegedly struck Jared Wright about 4 a.m. while driving east on Vista Chino toward the wash, then drove about two miles from the scene to his home, where Cathedral City firefighters and police found the victim “on the roof of the vehicle with significant injuries,” according to an arrest warrant declaration. Firefighters took Wright to Desert Regional Medical Center in Palm Springs for treatment.
The crash shattered the windshield of Miller’s Volkswagen Passat, pushing the top portion into the car’s interior, and also damaged the hood and roof, the declaration states. Blood was found on the roof and passenger side of the Volkswagen.
Miller told investigators that he knew he hit something due to a loud noise and window damage, but did not exit his car and see what it was, the declaration states. He said he did not have his cell phone on him, so he drove to his home, then discovered Wright atop his car after arriving home, according to the declaration.
He was arrested at his home, and released from custody the following day on $25,000 bail, according to county jail records.
Miller is due back in court Dec. 6 for a felony settlement conference.
Download the KESQ & CBS Local 2 app on iTunes or Google Play for up-to-the-minute breaking news alerts & more
More: I-Team and Stands for You investigations
Find us on Facebook: KESQ News Channel 3 & CBS Local 2
Follow us on Twitter for breaking news updates: @KESQ & @Local2
We’re on Instagram! @KESQ_News_Channel_3 & @CBSLocal2
Noticias en español: Telemundo 15
