Toddler killed, 2 others injured in suspected DUI crash in Long Beach

DUI driver arrested after toddler killed in crash

A 20-month-old girl was killed when a driver reversed and jumped the sidewalk, hitting her and two other women. 

LONG BEACH, Calif. - A toddler was killed and a young girl and a woman were injured when a suspected DUI driver reversed into the group as they sat on the front steps of a home in Long Beach.

What we know:

Officers responded shortly before 11:30 a.m. Monday to the 400 block of Maine Avenue to reports of a crash involving a vehicle and three pedestrians, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

A 45-year-old woman and two girls – ages 20 months and 12-years-old – were struck by the vehicle and taken to a hospital.

The toddler was driven to a hospital by Long Beach police, but unfortunately died. The woman and the other girl were hospitalized and listed in stable condition. 

A preliminary investigation revealed 55-year-old Lamont Ivan Russell of Long Beach was attempting a turn when the vehicle reversed, went off the roadway and onto the sidewalk, colliding with the three pedestrians, officials said. 

Russell remained at the scene and was booked into the Long Beach City Jail for charges including felony vehicular manslaughter, felony DUI, and misdemeanor battery. His bail was set at $335,000.

What they're saying:

Nearby resident Alisa Hill said that she ran outside after hearing a "blood-curdling" scream, and saw the woman pinned between the vehicle and a wall. She said the young girl had a gash on her leg.

"There was the white car backed up all the way onto someone's front porch that they were hanging out on," Hill said.

She said the driver was reversing the vehicle when the crash occurred.

"You know sometimes you switch pedals? Instead of braking, he gassed, and he gassed it enough and pinned that person up against, in between the wall and the car," she said. "They chill on the porch a lot."