Suspected Deadly DUI Driver Was Arrested Before, Police Says

INDIO- A man accused of being drunk when the pickup truck he was driving struck and killed a bicyclist was free on bail for an earlier DUI charge when the accident occurred, and he remains free today, police said.

Arturo R. Hernandez, 64, of Indio, was driving on Highway 111 west of Madison Street around 8:45 p.m. Tuesday when his pickup truck struck Michael A. Cole, 49, also of Indio, said Indio police spokesman Ben Guitron.

Cole was pronounced dead about a half-hour later at John F. Kennedy Memorial Hospital, according to police and the Riverside County coroner’s office.

Hernandez was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and released, even though he had been arrested on March 8 by Indio police on suspicion of the misdemeanor DUI and released from the Indio Jail the next day on $2,500 bail.

“We arrested him and then released him so we can file a complaint,” Guitron said.

Hernandez could possibly face a manslaughter charge, Guitron said.

He is due in court on May 19 for the March 8 arrest.