Driver pleads not guilty to DUI hit-and-run that injured 3 in Newport Beach

A 58-year-old man Texas has been charged with an alcohol-fueled hit-and-run collision last week that injured three people in Newport Beach.

James Craig Kelly appeared in a Santa Ana courtroom Monday to answer to charges of hit-and-run with injury and driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury, both felonies, as well as one misdemeanor count of driving on a restricted license.

Police were called Thursday to the intersection of San Joaquin Hills Road and MacArthur Boulevard by a report of a collision that took place shortly before 4:50 p.m., officials confirmed.

Officers issed a bulletin for a black Range Rover with a California license plate, whose driver they believe was responsible for the collision, and located the suspect’s vehicle about one mile from the crash site, police said.

Kelly, who turned 59 on Tuesday, pleaded not guilty to the charges during a hearing in the Central Justice Center in Santa Ana. He is due to appear in court Sept. 22 for a pretrial hearing at the Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach.

In all, three people were injured in the collision, police said.