Wife Faces 12 Years In Prison For DUI Crash That Killed Husband

DESERT HOT SPRINGS, CA — A drunken driver who caused a head-on collision near Desert Hot Springs that killed her husband and injured two others pleaded guilty Friday to several felony charges.

Ingeborg Binninger, 69, entered her plea to charges of DUI gross vehicular manslaughter, driving under the influence of alcohol causing bodily injury and driving with a blood-alcohol content exceeding the legal limit of .08 percent causing bodily injury, along with several sentence-enhancing allegations.

Binninger faces a maximum sentence of 12 years and eight months in state prison, according to John Hall, a spokesman for the Riverside County District Attorney's Office. Her plea was with the court, not under a deal with the district attorney's office, he said.

Superior Court Judge James S. Hawkins scheduled sentencing for Oct. 9 at the Larson Justice Center in Indio.

Binninger suffered major injuries in the two-vehicle crash, which occurred about 2:20 p.m. on April 16, 2019, on Mountain View Road, near Club House Drive, just south of the Desert Hot Springs city limits.

Her blood-alcohol limit was measured at .13 — nearly twice the legal limit of .08 — at after the collision that killed 64-year-old Douglas Binninger, according to court documents.

A declaration in support of arrest warrant prepared by California Highway Patrol Officer Thomas De Young said when he asked if she had been drinking, the hospitalized defendant told the officer that she had a margarita during lunch about three hours prior to the crash.

According to Deputy District Attorney Karen Salas, two people in the other car also suffered injuries. One of the victims recovered, while the other suffered unspecified permanent damage, the prosecutor said.