Deputy Pursues Alleged Hit-Run, Impaired Driver from Cabazon to Desert Hot Springs, Makes Arrest

A deputy based in the San Gorgonio Pass pursued an alleged hit-and-run driver in a Camaro from Cabazon to Desert Hot Springs to make an arrest on Wednesday.

The fleeing Camaro eventually blew a tire and stopped at Highway 62 and Dillon Road, and the driver was arrested, Sgt. Anthony Williams of the sheriff's Cabazon Station said in a statement.

The chase began about 5:40 p.m. Wednesday when the deputy heard CHP radio traffic describing a hit-and-run incident involving a suspected impaired driver on Interstate 10 near Apache Trail in Cabazon, Williams said.

The deputy spotted a white 2001 Chevrolet Camaro similar to the hit-and-run vehicle, Williams said.

"The deputy observed the vehicle exit the Interstate onto Apache Trail and travel the wrong way on the round-a-bout," Williams said.

When the deputy activated his overhead lights on Main Street at Apache Trail, the driver of the Camaro did not stop, Williams said.

The Camaro driver fled east on Main Street at a high rate of speed and entered eastbound Interstate 10 at the Main Street on-ramp, and continued east, Williams said.

The fleeing driver led the deputy through Whitewater on the 10, then headed north on Highway 62, where the front right tire on the Camaro blew out, Williams said.

The Camaro came to a stop at Highway 62 and Dillon Road in the unincorporated area of Desert Hot Springs, Williams said.

The driver, identified as Michael Dean Martin, age 21, of Joshua Tree, was taken into custody without incident, Williams said. The Camaro was determined to be an unreported stolen vehicle, taken in Desert Hot Springs, Williams said.

Inmate records listed the time of Martin's as 5:50 p.m., about 10 minutes after the pursuit began.

Martin was arrested and booked at Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility on felony charges related to vehicle theft, possession of the stolen vehicle, reckless evading of a peace officer, and misdemeanor charges of driving while under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs and possession of drug paraphernalia, Williams said.

Martin's bail Thursday morning was $25,000, according to inmate records.

Officers assigned to the San Gorgonio Pass office of the California Highway Patrol were investigating the reported hit-and-run, Williams said.

Anyone with additional information was urged to call Deputy Donald Atkinson at the Cabazon Station at (951) 922-7100, the Riverside County Sheriff's Dispatch Center at 1-800-950-2444, or send an email to CabazonStation@RiversideSheriff.org.