A Victorville woman was arrested for a hit and run collision that killed a Hemet woman and seriously injured a Hemet man.
On Sunday, July 25, 2021, at around 8:03 p.m., the Huntington Beach Police Department responded to a traffic collision in the northbound lanes of Pacific Coast Highway near Newland Avenue. The reporting parties stated that a Nissan Altima had struck two pedestrians and fled the scene. Whe
n officers arrived they found the two pedestrians in the roadway. Deanna Stuve, 48, of Hemet, was pronounced dead at the scene. Frederick Stuve, 50, also from Hemet was seriously injured and rushed to a local hospital where he remains in critical condition.
Through investigation, including the information provided by multiple witnesses and video surveillance officers learned that a female driver, later identified as Chillandra Dalanalea Bell, 26, of Victorville, and female passenger drove a short distance from the scene of the collision and abandoned the vehicle along the roadway. The two got into a waiting white sedan that left the scene.
The getaway vehicle was identified and traced to a Huntington Beach home where officers conducted surveillance. Bell was arrested as she was leaving the home. It is unknown if alcohol or drugs were a factor in the collision. Authorities said that it is believed that the Altama was driving northbound on Pacific Coast Highway when it ran a red light striking the two pedestrians who were crossing Pacific Coast Highway at Newland Avenue in the crosswalk.
Bell was booked into the Huntington Beach Police Department jail for vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, hit and run resulting in death or injury and additional charges. She is being held in lieu of $100,000 bail. The driver of the getaway vehicle is still unknown but the identity remains under investigation.
Meanwhile, a family is mourning the death of Deanna Stuve, a 4th-grade teacher at Cawston Elementary School in the City of Hemet and are praying for the recovery of her husband, Frederick (Rick) Stuve. Fredrick’s cousin, Sarah Lindsey, started a Go Fund Me account on behalf of the family in order to assist with funeral expenses for Deanna and any expenses associated with Fredrick’s medical expenses and recovery. “Ricky and Deanna created a beautiful life together with their two daughters,” wrote Lindsey on the Go Fund Me page. “Their marriage was beautiful and inspiring. Deanna was an elementary school teacher who loved her students. But more than anything, she was a mom who loved her daughters more than life itself. Deanna was a beautiful light in this world, and she will be forever cherished by all who had the privilege of knowing her.”
The collision investigation is ongoing and being conducted by the HBPD Multidisciplinary Accident Investigation Team (MAIT). Anyone who may have witnessed the collision or the events leading up to it is encouraged to contact HBPD Traffic Investigator D. Demetre at (714) 536-5670, or Investigator V. Rattanchandani at (714) 536-5663.
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