Trial Delayed for Man Accused in Crash That Killed Elderly Woman, Dog

Trial has been reset to Oct. 21 for a man who allegedly ran over and killed a woman and her dog in Temecula in 2011 while driving under the influence of prescription drugs.

Harry Shane Scholes, 58, could face 15 years to life in prison if convicted in the July 18, 2011, death of Charlotte Boyce of Temecula.

Scholes, a thrice-convicted drunken driver, is accused of plowing down the 87-year-old Temecula woman and her dog, fatally injuring both, while under the influence of several medications.

Scholes, whose jury trial has been postponed a number of times, is charged with second-degree murder, DUI gross vehicular manslaughter, driving on a suspended license and driving on a suspended license while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

According to sheriff's investigators, Boyce was out for a morning walk with her dachshund, Lucy, along Via Cordoba when the defendant's pickup truck veered off the roadway and crashed into the pair.

Scholes, who lived with his parents in Temecula just a few blocks from the crash site, had lost his driving privileges because of a misdemeanor DUI conviction months before the crash.

Scholes allegedly told police he suffered from depression and admitted taking Klonopin, Serquel, Plendil, Cmybalta, Metoplin and Norco about two hours before the crash, according to a Temecula police investigator's statement. All of those but Plendil and Metoplin impair thinking and reactions, the investigator wrote.

Investigators searched Scholes' home in the 31000 block of Via San Carlos and found partially filled bottles of Seroquel, Clonazepam, Metoprolol Tartrate, Felodipine, Hydrocodone, Cymbalta and Lipitor.

He allegedly told investigators he did not remember details of the fatal crash, such as how his truck ended up on the curb.

According to published reports, he had a "Smart Start" ignition interlock device installed in his pickup truck that required him to breathe into an alcohol detector before he could drive -- a requirement that was among the terms of his probation stemming from a 2009 DUI conviction. The device, however, could not detect the presence of drugs.

Scholes remains jailed in lieu of $1 million bail at Southwest Detention Center near Murrieta.

Court records show there is also a civil wrongful death and personal injury lawsuit pending against Scholes that was filed by surviving family members of Boyce.

—City News Service and Patch staff contributed to this report.