Driver arrested for allegedly crashing into Pacific Grove house, injuring boy

PACIFIC GROVE, Calif. (KION) UPDATED 6:15 P.M. The suspect in a Pacific Grove hit and run posted $10,000 bail Monday. 31-year-old Felix Palmerin from Watsonville faces multiple charges including felony hit and run, misdemeanor, reckless driving with injury, and possession of a controlled substance.

The driver crashed into a home on Eardley Avenue Sunday morning, injuring a boy inside the home and the car's passenger.

Neighbors who came out after hearing the crash say it’s a miracle the boy 
who was inside is still alive after getting pinned under the car.

Investigators believe the suspect was speeding down Pine Avenue when he made an unsafe turn and lost control of the vehicle.

The young boy, who neighbors said is just 13-years-old, was playing video games inside when it all happened.

Neighbors rushed in to try to help get the boy out from the rubble.

“The young man was right underneath the boarded up window right there and he was yelling, 'mom, mom, I can’t move. I’m stuck. I’m pinned,' so the only thing they could do was just salvage through that window,” neighbor Rick Butler said.

Butler came out after hearing the crash from across the street and recalls the shocking moments.

“A car hitting full force into the building is a sound I’ll never forget; it was just a cross between an explosion and a wreck,” Butler told KION. “I watched them extricate the car with a tow truck and the front bumper to the steering wheel was accordion-ed in.”

Crews were able to get the boy out and he was flown to a Bay Area hospital.

The driver fled the scene and officers later located him in New Monterey.
Palmerin was arrested and taken to the Monterey County Jail where he posted $10,000 bail Monday.

Police are thanking neighbors for jumping into action.

“They helped in providing aid into those injured as well as providing a great description of the suspect driver,” PGPD Administrative Services Manager Jocelyn Francis said.

In addition to the young boy, a passenger in the car was also injured.
She was taken to the hospital but her current condition is unknown.
Neighbors say this intersection is troublesome to begin with.

“Especially coming up the hill and going down, people speed all day and night,” Butler said.

When we last spoke with the family, they said the boy is in a lot of pain but is expected to recover.

The investigation is ongoing. If you know anything about what happened, contact Pacific Grove PD. 

UPDATE 7/20/2020 10:45 a.m. A driver has been arrested in connection to a hit and run crash in Pacific Grove that injured a boy.

Police arrested Watsonville resident Felix Palmerin, 31, on two counts of felony hit and run, misdemeanor reckless driving with injury and possession of a controlled substance. He was found by Monterey police in New Monterey.

The crash happened Sunday morning in the 300 block of Eardley Avenue when a vehicle jumped a curb and went through the front of the house, pinning a boy who had been playing video games under it. Pacific Grove police said the driver left the area before they got there, but witnesses provided descriptions.

The boy who was injured was flown to a Bay Area hospital, but the family tells police that he has been released. A passenger in the vehicle was taken to a local hospital for treatment.

KION's Elisha Machado will have a report with more details about the hit and run on KION News at 5:00 and 6:00 p.m.

PREVIOUS STORY: A young boy is recovering Sunday night after a car crashed into his room in Pacific Grove that morning as he was playing video games.

The Pacific Grove Fire Department found a car completely inside the front portion of the house on Pine and Eardley Avenues Sunday afternoon, after it had apparently jumped the curb.

Things took a more urgent turn after they discovered a boy pinned underneath the car. Video from the scene shows first responders pulling him out; he was then flown to a Bay Area trauma center by helicopter.

One other person was sent to Natividad in Salinas.

"We regularly get vehicle accidents that will involve some sort of a damage to a building, especially with the buildings that are close to the streets. But it does not happen that often in any of our jurisdictions where we actually have the car go all the way into the structure much less having a person inside the structure that then is stuck by the vehicle and the damage to the structure," said Greg Greenlee, one of the division fire chiefs on the Monterey Peninsula.

The driver of the vehicle fled the scene, according to authorities. He was later taken into custody and assessed for any injuries. The investigation is ongoing.

The mother of the boy says he is staying with other family right now. He is still in a lot of pain but is expected to recover.