San Bernardino

Domingo Nava, 61, was killed in a Fontana car accident after he was struck by a vehicle while crossing the street, the afternoon of December 3, 2011. According to a news report in The Press Enterprise, the fatal pedestrian accident occurred near the intersection of Sierra Avenue and Reed Street in Fontana. Officials say Nava was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Officials are still looking into whether Nava was in a crosswalk at the time of the collision. An investigation is ongoing.

I offer my deepest condolences to the family members and friends of Domingo Nava for their tragic and heartbreaking loss. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

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A Victorville car accident involving several vehicles resulted in injuries for at least seven people, the afternoon of November 7, 2011. According to a news report in The Press Enterprise, the chain-reaction crash occurred on the southbound 15 Freeway, when Cherie Hallack, 55, who was driving a Caltrans truck tried to enter traffic from the right shoulder and entered into the path of a big rig. The large truck driven by 57-year-old Vazgen Vartani swerved to avoid hitting the Caltrans truck and sideswiped a Honda Civic driven by 56-year-old Fadel G. Noumeh.

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A 31-year-old woman was seriously injured in a dog bite incident after she was attacked by two American bull dogs while walking her own pets. According to a news report in The Press-Enterprise, the vicious dog attack occurred in the 200 block of East O Street in Colton, the morning of October 16, 2011. Officials say the woman was walking her dogs with her 11-year-old son when the two loose dogs charged the woman's pets and began to fight with them before turning on the victim. The woman suffered several bites on her chest and one of her legs. Her son used his skateboard to defend his mother by hitting the dogs. He was not injured. The woman was transported to an area hospital for treatment. The dogs' owners have been cited for several municipal code violations.

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The driver of an SUV and two children were injured in a San Bernardino car accident, which officials say, involved a hit-and-run driver. According to a KABC news report, the hit-and-run collision occurred in the westbound lanes of the 10 Freeway, near the Sierra Avenue exit, in Fontana, the night of August 12, 2011. The two SUVs involved in the crash overturned on the highway. The driver and two children in one of the SUVs were hospitalized following the collision. Three occupants of the second SUV fled the accident site. The authorities are searching for the hit-and-run driver, who may face felony charges.

My thoughts and prayers are with the three injured victims of this San Bernardino hit-and-run car accident. I wish them all the very best for a complete and speedy recovery.

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A pedestrian was severely injured in a San Bernardino car accident, which officials say, involved a hit-and-run driver. According to a news report in The Press-Enterprise, the major injury collision occurred early morning on August 10, 2011 at Rancho and Aster roads in Adelanto. Police found a 26-year-old man lying in the center lane of Rancho Road with major head injuries, a broken leg and severe road rash. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Anyone who witnessed the accident is asked to contact San Bernardino County Sheriff's deputies at 760-552-6800.

My heart goes out to this severely injured hit-and-run car accident victim and his family for what they are going through at this time. I wish him the very best for a speedy and complete recovery. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

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Dejuan Rene Smith, 20, was killed in a San Bernardino car accident, which officials say, involved a hit-and-run driver, the night of July 29, 2011. According to a news report in The Victorville Daily Press, the fatal pedestrian accident occurred on Balsam Road, near Lone Eagle Road, in Victorville. Officials say Smith, who was pregnant, was pushing her 14-month-old daughter in a stroller along the roadway, when she was struck by a Ford pickup truck. The driver failed to stop and drove away from the scene. Smith and her unborn child were fatally injured. Her young daughter was thrown from the stroller, but is expected to survive. The search is on for the hit-and-run driver.

My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Dejuan Rene Smith following this tragic hit-and-run car accident. It is indeed fortunate that the toddler did not suffer life-threatening injuries. This family will be in my thoughts and prayers.

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Rudy Ray Muniz, 47, was killed in a San Bernardino truck accident after a vehicle making a U-turn struck him. According to a news report in The-Press Enterprise, the fatal truck accident occurred near the intersection of Grove Avenue and Nocta Street in Ontario, the evening of July 8, 2011. Muniz was traveling north, in the left lane, on his motorcycle, when a truck in the right lane attempted to make a U-turn. Muniz was fatally injured as he collided with the truck and was pulled underneath it. An investigation is ongoing.

My heartfelt condolences go out to the family and friends of Rudy Ray Muniz following this tragic motorcycle accident. My thoughts and prayers are with them during this difficult time.

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Inadequate care and nursing home neglect led to the death of an elderly patient at a care facility operated by the Community Hospital of San Bernardino in 2008, state investigators have determined. According to a news report in The San Bernardino County Sun, the nursing home faces an $80,000 fine in connection with the patient's death. California Department of Public Health investigators found that the patient died on February 2, 2008 after the tubes that connected him to a ventilator had been disconnected.

The report states that a ventilator alarm that should have alerted staff about the disconnection was not heard. The report also states that the hospital, after this tragic incident, took corrective steps by training its staff about caring for patients who rely on ventilators. The fine was issued last month and the hospital did not appeal it.

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A hit-and-run driver, who struck and injured two bicyclists, one of them identified as Tim Moreno, has been arrested thanks to tips from the community. According to a news report in the Victorville Daily Press, the car accident occurred on June 11, 2011 near Apple Valley and Symeron roads in Apple Valley. Officials say the driver, 61-year-old Michael Slusser, came too close to the bike lane where the men were biking and struck Moreno in the back of his head with a passenger side mirror.

Moreno fell down and in the process knocked down another rider. Slusser fled the scene. The Victor Valley Bicycle Club had set up a reward fund to help catch the driver. Slusser was arrested on suspicion of felony hit-and-run. Slusser has apparently been arrested in the past for several crimes including domestic violence and vehicle code violations. Read the rest »

Zada Louise Fields, 80, of Kingman, Arizona, was killed in a San Bernardino car accident after her car rolled over along Route 66 in Mojave Desert. According to a news report in The Press-Enterprise, the fatal rollover crash occurred the afternoon of May 23, 2011 in Essex, near Needles. California Highway Patrol officials say Fields' 2010 Chevy Aveo drifted onto the soft asphalt shoulder. She steered back to the left, but lost control of the vehicle. Her car rolled over and came to rest in the open desert. Fields was pronounced dead at the scene. Officials say Fields was wearing her seatbelt, but "not properly."

My heartfelt sympathies go out to the family members of Zada Louise Fields for their devastating loss. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Read the rest »