A chain-reaction crash on Florida Avenue in Hemet on Sunday sent a Chrysler Aspen careening into a streetlight and then through the wall of the Salvation Army store, while a Hyundai driver abandoned his car with his girlfriend still inside and ran off — only to be tracked down by witnesses who followed him to a nearby parking lot.
According to Valley News, Hemet firefighters arriving at the scene found two vehicles involved in the crash, including a Hyundai Veloster that witnesses say struck the Chrysler Aspen at high speed before also striking the side of a westbound truck. The Aspen was knocked into a streetlight before slamming into the Salvation Army building, according to the outlet's report, while the crash also sent an SUV into a building.
Separately, scene reports published by Action Eye News LIVE place the collision at approximately 3:45 p.m. in the 1400 block of West Florida Avenue, describing a driver who collided with two moving vehicles and a light pole before crashing into the Salvation Army store building. That report also states a passenger in the suspect vehicle was hospitalized with complaints of pain, though the Valley News account does not specify hospitalization and instead reports that information about injuries was not provided by authorities.
Driver Flees on Foot, Allegedly Tries to Buy a Wig With Fake Cash
Witnesses told the outlet that the Hyundai driver pulled into a driveway and fled on foot, leaving behind a passenger described as his girlfriend still in the car. Truck occupants and other witnesses reportedly followed the fleeing driver to the parking lot of DD's Discounts, according to the same account.
From there, according to witnesses, the driver entered a nearby hair supply store and tried to buy a wig using counterfeit money. Hemet police officers subsequently entered the hair supply store and apprehended the driver without incident, per the report. No further details on the driver's identity or formal charges had been released at the time of publication, the outlet noted.
Legal Stakes Hinge on Injury Findings
Whether the fleeing driver faces misdemeanor or felony charges may come down to how Riverside County prosecutors classify any injuries from the crash. Under California Vehicle Code Section 20002, fleeing an accident scene involving only property damage without identifying oneself is a misdemeanor punishable by up to six months in county jail and fines up to $1,000, according to FindLaw. But if authorities confirm the passenger's injuries meet the threshold for bodily harm, Vehicle Code Section 20001 could elevate the case to a felony hit-and-run carrying a sentence ranging from 90 days in jail to four years in state prison, per the Shouse Law Group.
The alleged counterfeit wig purchase could add another layer of legal exposure. Possessing or attempting to pass counterfeit currency with intent to defraud violates Penal Code Sections 470 and 475, wobbler offenses that can be charged as a misdemeanor with up to a year in jail or a felony carrying up to three years in prison, according to Eisner Gorin LLP. However, under Proposition 47 provisions in Penal Code Section 473(b), counterfeit or forgery offenses involving $950 or less are generally treated as misdemeanors.
Another Crash on a Corridor With a Troubled Record
Sunday's wreck adds to a string of severe collisions along Florida Avenue, which carries the designation of State Route 74 and stretches 11.2 miles as a commercial highway spine through the San Jacinto Valley, according to Caltrans. In July, a multi-vehicle rollover crash in the 2700 block of West Florida Avenue sent two people to the hospital and led to an arrest after officers found a firearm inside an overturned Kia. Back in February, a bicyclist crossing Florida Avenue at Hamilton Avenue was struck and killed by a westbound delivery truck, prompting a multi-hour closure for a police traffic bureau investigation, according to the Hemet Police Department.
The corridor's crash history is also reflected in statewide benchmarking. Hemet recorded 79 speed-related fatal and injury crashes in 2022, ranking 11th out of 104 comparably sized California cities, and logged 29 fatal and injury hit-and-run collisions that same year, ranking 37th out of 104 cities, according to the California Office of Traffic Safety. Those figures add context to the corridor's crash history. According to the Office of Traffic Safety's California Annual Report 2023, hit-and-run fatal crashes decreased 12.35 percent from 332 to 291, while hit-and-run injury crashes decreased 1.93 percent from 14,629 to 14,347. According to the Office of Traffic Safety's California Highway Safety Plan 2023, over one-third (35.0 percent) of speeding-related crashes were rear end crashes.
