By Amy Fullerton
MODESTO, CA – In a preliminary examination here in Stanislaus County Superior Court this week for a person with multiple priors similar to the alleged offense at hand, witnesses took to the stand to recount the events of an alleged vehicular homicide and manslaughter that took the life of a 12-year-old child.
The alleged charges against the defendant included murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, felony hit-and-run, felony driving under the influence, and vandalism. The defendant also had prior DUI convictions as well, before the incident.
As reported by CBS Sacramento, on July 19, 2020, a family of four was making a left turn onto southbound Sisk Road from Plaza Parkway in Modesto when they were hit by the defendant, Kelley Marie Ball, who allegedly ran a red light and collided with the involved vehicle, killing a 12-year-old child, injuring the 15-year-old brother, and sending their father to the hospital with serious injuries.
After allegedly hitting the family, Ball ran inside a Walmart and attempted to steal face masks and shoes before she was taken into custody by officers.
Antonio Solorio was driving behind Ball before Ball allegedly ran the red light. “She just drove into traffic, like there was nobody driving. Like she had the road to herself,” Solorio explained to CBS Sacramento.
During the preliminary examination in court this week, a score of witnesses were brought to the stand to recall the events that happened on that fateful Sunday evening.
Aided by an interpreter, the mother of the family of four emphasized how healthy her children were before the accident and answered questions from counsel looking visually distraught.
Later into the preliminary examination, an officer who was one of the first on the scene told the courtroom about the tests he gave to Ball to determine if Ball was under the influence during the alleged incident.
The officer recalled giving a test that asked Ball to touch her finger to her nose six times. The officer observed that Ball was unable to do so accurately in each of the trials, but stated that she eventually was able to touch her nose and that her finger “was never higher than the bridge of her nose” when questioned by counsel.
Additionally, the officer emphasized that Ball had incorrectly said the day and date when asked, which he believed was also an indicator of sobriety.
Bail was set at $2.195 million. The arraignment is scheduled to be held in Stanislaus County’s Department 2 on December 6.
