SLO County woman convicted of hit-and-run, insurance fraud after injuring motorcyclist
A jury convicted a San Miguel woman of felony hit-and-run and insurance fraud Thursday, the San Luis Obispo County District Attorney’s Office said in a news release on Friday.
On March 23, 2021, Melissa Roseanne Brewer, 46, was driving her white Hyundai Veloster recklessly on south on Highway 1 from Highland Drive to southbound Highway 101 at Avila Beach Drive, when she struck a motorcylist who was merging onto the highway, the DA’s Office said.
The collision “sent the motorcyclist down onto the highway pavement with a badly broken ankle,” the release said. “Many people stopped to help the motorcyclist and called 911, but the Veloster sped away.”
Brewer later filed an insurance claim on March 28, 2021, saying her car had been part of a single-car, no-passenger, no-injury collision when she drove off the road into the guardrail.
On April 4, 2021, Brewer filed another claim with her insurance provider saying she was receiving medical attention related to the collision.
When investigating the hit-and-run, the California Highway Patrol located a white Veloster — Brewer’s vehicle — in a repair shop with damage. When they looked at the damage, they found that it was consistent with a multiple vehicle collision, not a guardrail.
CHP used vehicle records, cell phone data and eyewitness accounts to determine Brewer was the driver of the hit-and-run.
Brewer was convicted of felony hit-and run, four counts of insurance fraud and one misdemeanor count of reckless driving.
CHP and the District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation investigated the case. San Luis Obispo Deputy District Attorney Crystal Seiler prosecuted it.
Brewer will be sentenced on April 14 in San Luis Obispo Superior Court. She faces up to six years and eight months in prison.
This story was originally published March 17, 2023 at 6:16 PM.
