Driver Receives Sentence for Death in Chase

A 19-year-old Altadena man who led police on a brief car chase, causing a crash that killed a Santa Ana woman, was sentenced to 15 years to life in a state prison, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office said Friday.

Marcus Ivan McClellan was convicted in November of second-degree murder for killing Veronica Covarrubias, 31, a passenger in one of several cars hit during the chase. McClellan was also found guilty of stealing a vehicle, causing injury while evading an officer, causing injury while driving while intoxicated, and felony hit-and-run.

On Aug. 25, 2001, California Highway Patrol officers spotted McClellan driving south on the Pasadena Freeway in a 1988 Toyota that had been reported stolen, the district attorney’s office said.

When officers gave chase, authorities said, the driver hit a CHP vehicle and side-swiped a pickup before exiting the freeway at Broadway.

Driving through downtown at speeds up to 60 mph, McClellan, who was then 18, ran a red light and hit the passenger side of a Geo Prism at Olympic Boulevard, killing Covarrubias.

As the pursuit continued on Olympic and other streets, McClellan’s car hit three more vehicles, including two parked cars, authorities said.

The chase ended at Pico Boulevard when McClellan ran a red light, crashed and was ejected from the car.

He was taken to County-USC Medical Center.

“He was actually in very serious condition for a while,” said Jane Johnson, spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office.