| For Immediate Release Case # 11CF1355
February 15, 2013 |
Susan Kang Schroeder Chief of Staff Office: 714-347-8408 Cell: 714-292-2718 Farrah Emami
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DRIVER UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF DRUGS CONVICTED OF MURDERING PEDESTRIAN IN CAR CRASH AFTER RUNNING RED LIGHT
*Defendant also convicted of additional felony counts for the forgery of drug prescriptions
SANTA ANA – A driver with two prior convictions for driving under the influence was convicted yesterday for murdering a pedestrian in a drug-induced car crash after running a red light. Adam Harrison Hall, 29, Placentia, was found guilty by a jury Feb. 14, 2013, of one felony count of murder, one misdemeanor count of driving under the influence of drugs, two felony counts of obtaining or possessing drugs secured by a forged prescription, and one felony count of forgery of prescription. He faces a maximum sentence of 19 years and four months to life in state prison at his sentencing April 5, 2013, at 9:00 a.m. in Department C-27, Central Justice Center, Santa Ana.
At approximately 11:10 a.m. on Feb. 13, 2011, Hall drove northbound on Moulton Parkway while under the influence of drugs in the City of Laguna Niguel in a Ford sport utility vehicle (SUV). At the intersection of Moulton Parkway and Nueva Vista Drive, Hall drove through a red light and crashed into a Toyota SUV that was passing legally through the intersection. The force of the crash caused both vehicles to lose control. The Toyota spun 360 degrees before coming to a stop. The occupants, Steven James and Anna Gaffney, were both injured in the crash. Gaffney suffered a fractured collar bone and James suffered severe bruising.
As a result of the crash, Hall lost control of his vehicle and drove up the curb onto the sidewalk. He then crashed into victim Mara Lynnes Steves, 48, who was walking in the area attempting to locate the owner of a stray dog. Hall murdered Steves, who died as a result of her injuries. Hall also struck the dog, a Labrador Retriever named Max, leaving a tire mark on the animal and requiring it to undergo emergency veterinary services.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department responded to the scene and investigated this case. At the time of the crash, Hall was under the influence of drugs including methamphetamine, Diazepam, Nordiazepam, Alprazolam, Hydroxyalprazolam, Oxazepam, Temazepam, amphetamine, Morphine, and 11-nor-9-carboxy-delta-9-tetrahyrocannabinol (THCA).
On May 20, 2011, Hall called a female acquaintance, Elizabeth Rene Parker, who worked in a doctor’s office where the defendant is not a patient to request prescription drugs that Hall for which he did not have a prescription. Parker pretended to be one of her co-workers and called a CVS drugstore to order a prescription of Norco under Hall’s name. Hall entered the drugstore and picked up a prescription of Norco.