Long Beach Woman Booked on Suspicion of DUI, Death of Cudahy Man

The District Attorney's Office asked today for more investigation before determining what charges, if any, are warranted in an alleged DUI crash that killed a 23-year-old Cudahy man on the Long Beach (710) Freeway in South Gate.

Melanie Gosch, 27, of Long Beach, was booked on suspicion of causing injury or death while driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs following the Sunday night crash, said California Highway Patrol Officer Francisco Villalobos.

Gosch was driving a 2007 Nissan Sentra that struck Manny Berumen, according to the CHP, which had not determined why he was on the roadway.

Officers were dispatched to the scene in response to a report that a long-haired man in dark clothing was trying to stop traffic in the No. 3 lane on the southbound side of the freeway, said CHP Officer Patrick Kimball.

Within a minute, the CHP received another call that a pedestrian was lying in the Number 3 lane near the Firestone Boulevard offramp, and he was pronounced dead at the scene about 8 p.m., Kimball said.

The driver of a black Mercedes-Benz with a broken windshield and the driver of a black Toyota Prius with damage stopped to say they may have hit a pedestrian on the freeway, Kimball said. Those motorists were not arrested.

— City News Service