Wild chase of suspected DUI driver through snowbound Sierra ends in head-on crash, arrest

A suspected drunken driver who led CHP officers on a high-speed chase during a Sierra snowstorm is in El Dorado County custody on multiple charges after crashing head-on into an oncoming car on Highway 50 near Meyers.

The wild Jan. 3 incident began on eastbound Highway 50 near Sierra-at-Tahoe resort with calls from motorists of a Toyota Prius driving at high speeds and passing vehicles in the opposite lanes of traffic, according to news reports.

California Highway Patrol officers pursued the driver, later identified as Lisa Anne Alestri, 63, into Meyers, where her Prius crashed head-on into a sport utility vehicle at a chain control area. Five people inside the SUV received what CHP officials said were minor injuries.

Alestri, a drug and alcohol abuse counselor based in San Francisco, is being held in lieu of $403,000 bail at El Dorado County Jail in South Lake Tahoe on suspicion of numerous charges including driving under the influence causing bodily injury; evading peace officers; aggravated resisting arrest and obstructing emergency workers.

The day was marked by heavy traffic and poor conditions as a winter storm pounded the Sierra Nevada.

Darrell Smith

The Sacramento Bee

916-321-1040

Darrell Smith is a local reporter for The Sacramento Bee. He joined The Bee in 2006 and previously worked at newspapers in Palm Springs, Colorado Springs and Marysville. Smith was born and raised at Beale Air Force Base and lives in Elk Grove.