UPDATE: The Eureka Police Department believes the apparent hit and run that left a man dead may have occurred around 7 p.m. yesterday, possibly involving a dark-colored SUV. “The vehicle most likely has passenger side front end damage,” the latest EPD release states. PREVIOUSLY: The Eureka Police Department is investigating the death of a man […]
hit and run
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CHP: Pedestrian Death Near Westhaven Being Investigated
A pedestrian injured in an apparent hit and run on northbound U.S. Highway 101 near Sixth Avenue in Westhaven died this morning after being taken to St. Joseph Hospital. The man, whose name and age have not been released pending notification of next of kin, was found by a passing motorist just after 5:30 a.m. […]
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Marci Kitchen Pleads Guilty, Sentencing Set
Just weeks before her trial was set to begin, Marci Kitchen stood in front of Judge Kaleb Cockrum today and pleaded guilty to all the charges she was facing for fatally hitting two teenage girls, including her daughter, while driving drunk then fleeing the scene in 2016. Wearing a black and white brocade dress with […]
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Marci Kitchen Expected to Plead Guilty Monday
Judge Kaleb Cockrum today set a Monday hearing at which Marci Kitchen is expected to enter a guilty plea to the full set of charges she is facing for the hit-and-run deaths of two teenage girls, one of whom was her daughter. More than two years have passed since Kitchen allegedly was driving drunk and […]
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UPDATE: Kitchen Expected to Plead Guilty as Charged, Hearing Set for Monday
UPDATE: Judge Kaleb Cockrum today set a change of plea hearing for Monday with Marci Kitchen expected to enter guilty pleas to the full set of charges she is facing. Her defense attorney presented the court with a nine-page “white form” plea form. Deputy District Attorney Stacey Eads stated after the hearing that no plea […]
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2nd UPDATE: Suspect Surrenders in Fatal Hit and Run
2nd UPDATE: At about 6:30 p.m. today, 33-year-old Benjamin Shermis, of Arcata, came into the California Highway Patrol’s Arcata office and admitted he was the river in last night’s fatal hit-and-run collision on U.S. Highway 101, according to the CHP. The CHP reports that Shermis was subsequently arrested for felony hit and run and booked […]
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THIRD UPDATE: Pedestrian Killed in 101 Hit and Run ID
THIRD UPDATE: The Humboldt County Coroner’s Office has identified the pedestrian killed May 5 on U.S. Highway 101 north of the airport as McKinleyville resident Ralph Pak Summers. He was 49. CHP Officer Cy May said the case is active and the agency is “following up on some pretty good investigative leads.” He says investigators […]
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CHP Seeks Help to Find Hit and Run Driver
UPDATE: The CHP has identified a possible vehicle in the hit and run – a Toyota Prius, a 2010 to 2015 model. In its press release the CHP says “the vehicle will have little to no damage to the front bumper area. The vehicle will have a missing, front, driver side fender wall.” Previously: Benjamin […]
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UPDATE: Court Document Indicates Kitchen was ‘Extremely Intoxicated’
2nd UPDATE: Marcia “Marci” Kitchen pleaded not guilty to both charges facing her this afternoon and denied all special allegations during a brief arraignment. She’s next scheduled to appear in court Sept. 29, with a hearing set Oct. 6 to determine if there is enough evidence to hold her to stand trial in the case. […]
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CHP to Hand Off Fortuna Hit and Run Case to DA ‘Soon’
Two months after two 14-year-old girls were killed in a single-car hit and run crash in Fortuna, the California Highway Patrol is finalizing its report for the Humboldt County District Attorney’s Office to weigh filing criminal charges in the case. Officer Cy May said the preliminary report is finished and currently being reviewed by CHP […]
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Court Doc: Mom is Suspect in Fortuna Hit and Run; Showed Signs of Intoxication
An initial CHP investigation indicated the mother of one of two teenage girls who died after a July 12 hit and run crash was the driver and that she showed signs of intoxication shortly after the collision, according to a search warrant affidavit. “At that point, however, there was no evidence establishing her as the […]
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Attorneys: Fortuna Mom Standing by to Surrender in Fatal Hit and Run Case
Just hours after the California Highway Patrol sent out a press release asking for the public’s assistance in locating a Fortuna woman named a person of interest in last week’s hit and run crash that left two teenage girls dead — including her own daughter — her attorneys sent a letter to the CHP maintaining […]