Woman accused in deadly DUI Desert Hot Springs collision pleads not guilty
A 25-year-old woman accused of driving under the influence in a Desert Hot Springs crash that killed a motorcyclist pleaded not guilty to DUI gross vehicular manslaughter today, according to court records.
Mia Janae Perry of Rialto was arrested Oct. 21, 2021, after the late-night collision, according to the Desert Hot Springs Police Department.
According to a declaration in support of arrest warrant filed by detective G. Elias from the Desert Hot Springs Police Department, officers responded to the intersection of Highway 62 and Pierson Boulevard at around 10:10 p.m. that night to a report of a traffic injury collision.
Perry was allegedly trying to drive across Pierson Boulevard at Highway 62 but failed to yield to traffic, causing a man riding a Harley-Davidson to crash into her Toyota Solara, according to police.
The motorcyclist, 55-year-old Jon Sherwood, died at the scene.
"The driver of the motorcycle was unable to stop or avoid the collision and collided into the driver's side of Perry's vehicle, ejecting himself from the motorcycle and into the northbound lanes of Highway 62 where he was pronounced deceased on scene,'' Elias said.
Following the crash, Perry was driven to the police department for further investigation, where she allegedly told an officer that she had smoked marijuana about two hours prior to the fatal collision, authorities said.
She allegedly smoked six hits from a blunt between 4 and 8 p.m. before leaving a friend's house because she thought she didn't feel the effects of the marijuana and that she was okay to drive, according to Elias.
A blood sample collected by a forensic phlebotomist about five hours after the collision indicated that Perry's blood allegedly contained Delta-9-THC.
Additionally, Perry told an officer that she has albinism causing her to be partially blind in one eye and is required by the DMV to wear glasses while driving, according to Elias.
Perry is out on a $35,000 bail bond, according to court records.
