Sonora man seriously injured in suspected DUI crash

A 41-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of drunken driving after his vehicle went off a road, down a steep embankment and crashed into a tree Monday evening in the Sonora area.

Ronald Richardson, of Sonora, suffered major injuries in the crash and was taken by air ambulance to Doctors Medical Center in Modesto, according to the California Highway Patrol.

He was driving a 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche and appeared to have not been wearing a seat belt. There were no passengers in Richardson’s vehicle.

The crash occurred shortly before 8 p.m. near South Fork Road and Sunny Brook Drive, about a mile west of Highway 108.

The CHP said Richardson was heading south on South Fork faster than the 25 mph speed limit. The vehicle went off the west side of the road and partially down the embankment, where it struck the tree.

The vehicle then rolled over multiple times to the bottom of the embankment, the CHP reported. Richardson was ejected from the vehicle and suffered major head injuries.

This story was originally published April 14, 2015 at 12:40 PM with the headline "Sonora man seriously injured in suspected DUI crash."