A Fullerton man was in custody Thursday on suspicion of a DUI crash that killed a motorcyclist, and police were also investigating a crash at the scene involving a Tesla in automated-drive mode and a police cruiser.
The fatal crash occurred about 9:45 p.m. Wednesday at West Orangethorpe Avenue and South Gilbert Street, according to Kristy Wells, a spokeswoman for the Fullerton Police Department.
Francisco Garcia-Vargas, 44, was booked on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence and driving without a license, Wells said. He was booked initially into the Fullerton jail and was being transported to the Orange County Jail Thursday.
The motorcyclist was identified as Alexander Marce, 28, or Anaheim.
Marce, who was riding a Harley Davidson, was idling at a red light on Orangethorpe in the eastbound number two lane at Gilbert when Garcia-Vargas, who was behind the wheel of a 1999 BMW 323i, rear-ended the motorcyclist without stopping, Wells said.
Garcia-Vargas kept going with the motorcycle wedged under the vehicle, Wells said. The motorcyclist was ejected into the air.
Witnesses trailed the BMW and held the driver at the scene until police arrived, Wells said.
As police were waiting for clean-up crews and directing traffic, the driver of a Tesla who had the vehicle in automated-drive mode and was allegedly distracted by a smart phone crashed into a police cruiser in the area just after midnight Thursday, Wells said. The cruiser was empty, and no injuries were reported.