Patch.com reports that a Victorville man with a history of driving under the influence was arrested for murder after a crash that killed a woman in August.
The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said that 27-year-old Shawn Anthony Ballard has been arrested on the charge of DUI murder after a fatal crash at the intersection of La Mesa Road and Wagon Wheel Drive.
Authorities say that in the early morning hours of Monday, August 14, SBCSD deputies responded to a report of the collision. They arrived to find two vehicles, a white 2009 Toyota Yaris and a black 1999 Toyota Sienna, had collided head-on.
The woman in the Toyota Yaris was declared dead at the scene, while Ballard was trapped inside his vehicle and had to be extricated by firefighters.
Investigators with the San Bernardino Sheriff’s Department’s Major Accident Investigation Team determined that Ballard was traveling westbound when he suddenly swerved into the eastbound lane and collided with the victim’s vehicle as she was waiting in a designated turn lane.
After the investigation was concluded, court documents showed Ballard’s past DUI charges. A warrant for his arrest was issued, and he was taken into custody on November 16 at his home.
Ballard is currently facing the charges of murder and felony DUI resulting in great bodily harm or death. He is now being held at the High Desert Detention Center on a $1,000,000 bond.
