Charges Await Felon Suspected In Temecula DUI Crash That Injured 7

TEMECULA, CA — Felony charges are expected Thursday against a 36-year-old Temecula convicted felon accused of driving under the influence and causing a four-vehicle wreck at a Temecula intersection that injured seven people, two seriously.

Matthew Thomas Jackson of Temecula was arrested and booked into the Byrd Detention Center in Murrieta Sunday on suspicion of DUI resulting in significant bodily injury and hit-and-run resulting in injuries.

The Riverside County District Attorney's Office was reviewing his case and confirmed to Patch that Jackson has a history of substance abuse violations dating back to 2007. Most recently, he was convicted in March of 2022 of assault causing great bodily injury and resisting or deterring an officer, resulting in 24 months probation, according to court records.

He was due in court Thursday and was being held in lieu of $500,000 bail, according to jail records.

Just after 7 p.m. Sunday, Jackson was involved in a multi-vehicle collision that happened just after on Butterfield Stage Road at Channel Street, according to Riverside County Sheriff's Department Sgt. Joey Sinz.

Jackson was headed southbound in a car that plowed through a red light, slamming into another vehicle going westbound on Channel, according to Sinz.

The collision also impacted two other vehicles, and after all of them came to rest, the suspect fled his car and ran away, Sinz said. Witnesses provided deputies with the suspect's direction of travel, and deputies located and detained him."

Jackson did not require hospitalization and was arrested. Deputies determined he was allegedly under the influence of alcohol.

County fire department personnel reached the location within minutes and identified a total of seven patients, "two with serious injuries, two with moderate injuries, and three who were assessed and declined further treatment," according to the agency.

Four people who suffered moderate to serious injuries were taken to a regional trauma center for treatment, and all were expected to recover, according to Sinz.

A person close to the injured victims informed Patch that at least one of the wounded was a Great Oak High School senior.

Background information on the suspect was unavailable.

Related:

Temecula Crash Injures 7, Suspected DUI Driver Awaits Felony Charges

Suspect In DUI Hit-And-Run In Temecula Arrested