Traffic Fatality May Bring Charges
A 23-year-old Brea woman may face misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter charges following the death of a Fontana woman whose car she hit Monday, authorities said.
Madalen Bitzko, 77, died about 4 a.m. Tuesday at UCI Medical Center as a result of the major head injury she sustained when Jennifer Hartley broadsided her car shortly after noon Monday, said Lt. Dave Carlock, a spokesman for the Brea Police Department.
The accident at Puente Street and Central Avenue in Brea occurred when Hartley apparently ran a red light at about 40 mph and struck Bitzko, who was turning left from Central onto Puente, Carlock said.
The case likely will be submitted to the district attorney’s office within a few days for a determination on whether charges would be filed, he said.
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