Higher bail, new arrest warrant issued for Long Beach fire captain

April 27, 2011|By Michael Miller, michael.miller@latimes.com

The Orange County district attorney has issued an arrest warrant for a Long Beach Fire Department captain and Huntington Beach resident who has been charged with injuring a bicyclist in a hit-and-run while under the influence.

John David Hines, 38, is charged with one felony count each of driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury, driving with a blood alcohol level of .08% or more causing injury and hit-and-run with injury, according to a release from the district attorney. He also faces sentencing enhancements for causing great bodily injury and having a blood alcohol level over .20%.

If convicted, Hines faces a maximum sentence of six years and eight months in state prison.

Hines is accused of becoming intoxicated on the morning of April 1 before driving erratically on Westminster Avenue in Seal Beach in his Chevrolet pickup truck. While driving, he allegedly lost control of his vehicle and swerved into the bike lane, where he struck 47-year-old Jeffrey Gordon.

Gordon was thrown more than 70 feet and landed on the shoulder of the road, the release said. Hines is accused of fleeing the scene after the collision.

Soon after, Huntington Beach and Seal Beach police officers tracked Hines down at his residence, where he was accused of having a blood alcohol level of .24%, the release said. Farrah Emami, a spokeswoman for the district attorney, said Hines was arrested at the time and posted bail, but after the district attorney filed criminal charges, it issued a new arrest warrant Tuesday with higher bail.

"Based on the severity of the crime and the injuries to the victim, we believe $250,000 is a more appropriate bail," she said. "Now that the warrant has been issued, he will either be arrested or turn himself in."

Gordon spent two weeks at Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, where he was treated for head trauma, severe lacerations and bruising to his head and body, internal injuries and spinal and vertebrae injuries, the release said. He continues to suffer limited physical mobility and speech and memory loss.

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