Santa Monica Woman Suspected of DUI in Fatal Crash

A  driver from Santa Monica suspected of being under the influence was facing possible felony charges Tuesday after her car struck and killed a tow truck driver, who was hooking up a disabled vehicle on Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu. 

The suspect—identified as Jill Rose, 44, of Santa Monica—was taken into custody after her car struck a second vehicle that was parked near the Malibu Pier, the sheriff's department reported.

For more details on the crash, click over to Malibu Patch.

The fatal crash was reported around 9 p.m. Monday on the east side of PCH at John Tyler Drive. Ronald Carver, 45, of Newbury Park, died at the scene.

"The victim was finishing hooking up a car when he was struck by a silver Audi that hit the ramp of the tow vehicle, did a complete barrel role and continued south on PCH," said sheriff's Sgt. Philip Brooks of the Los Angeles County sheriff's Malibu/Lost Hills Station.

"A witness identified the silver Audi as the one that struck the tow truck driver," Brooks said.

Rose, who was taken to a hospital for treatment of "head trauma and other non-life threatening injuries," faces possible charges of felony hit-and-run and vehicular manslaughter, Brooks said.

The crashes and subsequent investigation prompted the closure of both eastbound lanes of PCH near John Tyler Drive and one eastbound lane near the Malibu Pier.

Woman Who Witnessed Hit-and-Run Honors Tow Truck Driver in Poem

— Malibu Patch editor Jessica Davis contributed to this report.