Pregnant Santa Ana Woman Hurt As DUI Driver Slams Into Her: CHP

SANTA ANA, CA — A Santa Ana woman and her unborn child were hospitalized in a weekend crash in the Temecula Valley, the California Highway Patrol reported Monday. The woman, who is four months pregnant, was hit by a man who is accused of driving under the influence of alcohol.

The crash happened just before 6 p.m. on the northbound side of Interstate 15, just south of I-215 in Murrieta, according to CHP Officer Mike Lassig. The 40-year-old Orange County woman was a passenger in a 2007 Cadillac Escalade which was stopped in the number three lane in heavy traffic.

Meanwhile, 60-year-old Jose Ruiz of Tijuana was headed northbound on the 15 as well, Lassig said. He was travelling at an estimated 60 mph, despite the slow-down ahead.

"[Ruiz] failed to see [the Escalade] stopped for traffic directly in front of him," Lassig said in a news release. "[He] allowed the front of [his 2006 Toyota Scion] to strike the rear of [the Escalade] without any braking application."

Though the 50-year-old driver of the Escalade was unhurt, his passenger was not so lucky.

"[She] was four months pregnant and sustained severe injuries," Lassig said, adding that the woman was taken to Rancho Springs Medical Center in Murrieta.

As of Monday, officials believed the baby had survived the wreck.

"We are hoping for the best," Lassig told Patch.

Ruiz, who had moderate injuries, was also taken to the hospital. After treatment at Inland Valley Hospital in Wildomar, he was arrested on suspicion of felony DUI and booked into the French Valley jail, according to booking records and the CHP. His bail was set at $50,000.

Lassig stressed that, "DUIs are 100 percent avoidable... if you drink, don't drive."

The CHP's Temecula office is investigating the crash.

— Jail booking photo courtesy: Riverside County Sheriff's Department