LANCASTER – A Lake Los Angeles woman flipped an SUV early Sunday morning, sending six children to the hospital, with two of them critically injured, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The CHP reports the crash happened around 6:15 a.m. Sunday on Avenue I near 60th Street East. They say Stanesha Nicole Allen, 31, was driving a 2002 Toyota Sequoia, with six children in the vehicle, when the vehicle veered off the road and flipped several times.
All six children were injured, and two of them suffered major injuries. A four-year-old-girl reportedly suffered major head trauma and a 2-year-old boy suffered major injuries, including an amputated foot.
CHP officials say Allen was believed to be drunk based on a breathalyzer and field sobriety test. Allen was reportedly at a wedding, hours earlier.
The two critically injured children were airlifted to the Antelope Valley Hospital, while Allen and the four other children, ranging in age from 10 months to 11 years old, were transported to the same hospital, via ambulance.
Allen was arrested for suspicion of drunk driving and child endangerment and remains at the hospital in police custody. CHP officials say more criminal charges are pending.
Updated 9/27/11: Stanesha Allen has been charged with more than a dozen felonies, including drunk driving, child abuse and child restraint law violation. If convicted, Allen faces up to 19 years in prison. Allen pleaded not guilty to all the charges and is being held in lieu of $1.7 million bail. She is due back in court on October 7th.