A mental competency evaluation was ordered Friday for a woman who was allegedly on drugs when she drove into a group of cyclists on Fiesta Island, critically injuring one rider.
Theresa Owens, 49, was arrested after the Aug. 12 accident and charged with driving under the influence of a controlled substance and possession of methamphetamine.
At Owens’ arraignment in August, Deputy District Attorney Jessica Coto said the defendant drove the wrong way on a one-way road about 6:30 p.m., plowing into a group of 16-20 cyclists, hitting 10 of the riders head-on.
Owens got out of her car and appeared to be under the influence of drugs, screaming and acting erratically, according to witnesses. The defendant was taken to a hospital, where a baggie of methamphetamine was found in a body cavity, the prosecutor said.
One of the riders who was struck, 43-year-old Juan Carlos Vinolo, has permanent paralysis from the waist down and also suffered a collapsed lung and lost a kidney, Coto said.
A preliminary hearing was scheduled for Friday, but Owens’ attorney expressed doubt regarding her mental competency and requested an examination by a court-appointed psychiatrist.
A judge is expected to rule on the mental competency issue on Dec. 22.
— City News Service
