A woman who apparently crashed her truck into a Palm Springs house and then tried to run from the scene was behind bars in Banning on Monday, police said.
27-year-old Minica Starr Murrell was arrested Sunday following the afternoon crash in the 300 block of Rosa Parks Drive, according to Palm Springs Police Sergeant Harvey Reed.
According to Reed, the Palm Springs woman apparently crashed into the house in a 1979 GMC pick-up truck around 2:15 p.m.-- hitting a 50-year-old woman who was inside at the time, injuring her legs and shoulders. Murrell didn't stick around to see if that woman was alright, though, and took off in her truck, Reed said.
Responding police officers found Murrell in her truck about a half hour later and a half mile away from the crash, according to police and jail reports.
"As officers approached the pick up, the driver ran from the vehicle," he said. "Officers chased the driver on foot across several streets and arrested her in the backyard of a nearby residence."
Murrell was arrested and taken to the Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Banning, where she was booked on charges of felony hit and run and resisting arrest, according to Reed and jail records. As of Monday afternoon, the woman remained locked up in lieu of $75,000 bail.
As for the cause of the crash, police do not suspect alcohol or drugs played a role; rather, reckless driving is blamed.
"The preliminary investigation determined that the driver, 27-year-old Minica Murrell from Palm Springs, was driving at an unsafe speed and made an unsafe turn prior to the collision," Reed said. "Alcohol or drugs were not a factor in the collision."
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
