Fleeing Driver Kills Banning Woman In Pursuit, Crash: CHP

BANNING, CA — A young Banning woman died after a driver fled a traffic stop in the Cabazon area Thursday night, culminating in a fiery wreck, officials say.

Shortly after 9:30 p.m., Riverside County Sheriff's Deputies tried to pull over a suspected drunk driver heading the wrong way at Seminole Drive and Apache Trail, near the outlets in Cabazon, according to sheriff's and CHP officials.

The driver, a 48-year-old Hemet man in a Ford Mustang convertible, took off "at speeds exceeding 90 to 95 mph" on Seminole Drive, towards Banning, CHP Officer Jonathan Torres told Patch.

Meanwhile, a 23-year-old Banning woman was stopped at the stop sign in her Nissan Versa on Seminole Drive, at Malki Road. That's when the speeding driver slammed into the back of the Versa, Torres said.

"After the impact, both the Nissan and Ford traveled in a westerly direction into a nearby business and came to rest," he said.

The crash then sparked a fire near Crazy Coyote Tacos in Banning.

Firefighters arrived at the crash scene to find the female driver dead. She was identified as 23-year-old Carlie Membrino.

The suspect was taken to a nearby hospital with "non-life-threatening" injuries, according to Torres.

The California Highway Patrol is investigating the incident, and no other information was immediately available.