TURLOCK, Calif. — Suspected DUI driver killed after going the wrong way down SR-99 in Turlock and colliding head-on with another car.
Modesto - California Highway Patrol (CHP) reportedly received several calls about a wrong-way driver in a red Ford Focus at around 10:15 p.m. Tuesday, June 1. The driver was traveling northbound on southbound SR-99, north of Lander Avenue in Turlock. When Modesto CHP got to the area, they found the red Ford Focus with its lights on and engine running, stopped in the center median near Linwood Avenue..
When officers found the driver, they said he was "slumped over the steering wheel." They also said they could see "several empty beer bottles on the floorboard" of the car.
The driver woke up suddenly after officers tried to wake him and drove forward, ignoring the officers' request for him to stop. CHP said that the car struck a patrol car while it was driving away, still going in the wrong direction on SR-99.
The car soon crashed head-on into a gray Chevy Silverado, just north of Fulkerth Avenue.
When officers arrived at the scene of the crash, they found the driver of the Ford Focus dead at the scene. The driver of the Chevy Silverado sustained minor injuries and a passenger in the Silverado had major injuries. Both were transported to local hospitals.
SR-99 was shut down for about eight hours while officers investigated the crash, according to CHP. They believe alcohol was a contributing factor in the collision.
WATCH MORE FROM ABC10: Scott Peterson may spend the rest of his life behind bars without the chance of parole
