PALM SPRINGS, Fla. -- A man has been charged with DUI manslaughter after police say he admitted to striking a pedestrian with his truck in Palm Springs.
According to a DUI probable cause affidavit, 36-year-old Yolexy Cuellar Perez was driving westbound on Forest Hill Boulevard in Palm Springs at 11:03 a.m. on Sunday, July 22, 2018, when he struck a pedestrian with his 2012 Dodge 3500 truck.
The responding officer with Palm Springs Police Department arrived at the scene of the accident and saw the pedestrian in the roadway with what appeared to be potentially fatal injuries to the head and crotch area.
A witness told the officer that he saw a truck that appeared to be the one stopped in a nearby parking lot, traveling about 40-45 mph on Forest Hill Boulevard when the truck collided with a pedestrian as they walked south across the road in an area that was not a designated crosswalk.
The officer spotted a 2012 black Dodge truck in the nearby parking lot. The vehicle appeared to be the truck involved because it matched the description of the vehicle involved and had left front end damage. The officer pulled behind the truck and spoke with the driver, identifying him as Yolexy Cuellar Perez.
Utilizing an English translator, the officer informed Perez that he was conducting a crash investigation and requested that the driver submit to a lawful test of his blood. The driver refused to submit the blood alcohol test.
According to police, Perez admitted crashing into the pedestrian with his vehicle. He told police he had not consumed any alcohol, even after being confronted with his signs of impairment (which included the strong smell of alcohol, red and glassy eyes, speaking with a "slight slur", concentration on walking carefully, leaning on his truck while standing, and chewing gum and attempting to drink water after being told repeatedly not to drink anything.)
The pedestrian later died at a nearby hospital.
Perez was taken to the Palm Springs Police Department for booking. He is charged with DUI Manslaughter, which is a felony.
