County Charges Medlock

UCLA kicker Justin Medlock has been charged with felony driving under the influence of alcohol, the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office announced Friday.

Medlock was arrested after a Dec. 10 car accident in which Hannah Jun, 20, a member of UCLA’s women’s golf team, suffered injuries, that, according to authorities, included a fractured vertebra in her neck. Jun was a passenger in Medlock’s car.

Medlock, 22, a junior, had a blood-alcohol level of .08%, authorities said.

Medlock, who scored 89 points this season, was suspended from the Bruin football team the day after the accident. He did not travel with the team to El Paso, where the Bruins beat Northwestern in the Sun Bowl on Friday.

Medlock could not be reached and Bruin Coach Karl Dorrell declined to comment. UCLA Athletic Director Dan Guerrero said he was “very concerned about Justin,” adding, “Obviously the courts will decide what his fate will be, but he has a lot of teammates who are very much in support of him and he also has the administration in support of him. It’s a very tragic situation but hopefully he’ll make it through this.”

Free on $10,000 bail, Medlock is scheduled to be arraigned Tuesday in Inglewood Superior Court. If convicted, he faces a maximum state prison term of six years.

“This is a very good young man. He’s never been in trouble before,” Milton Grimes, Medlock’s attorney, told the Associated Press. “I don’t think he’s responsible for any felonious conduct. I have not had an opportunity to view the chemical tests yet. I’m going to have my own tests conducted.”

A 1998 Toyota pickup driven by Medlock crashed into a call box on the 405 Freeway about 3 a.m. on Dec. 10, according to California Highway Patrol officers.

Jun was found alone inside the truck, which had overturned. Medlock was later found walking on an Inglewood street about a mile and a half from the scene, Officer Tariq Johnson said.

Originally, Medlock was booked on suspicion of leaving the scene of an accident. But Friday, district attorney spokesperson Sandi Gibbons said, “The evidence we were presented was that he left the scene to get help.”

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Times staff writers Lonnie White and Mike Hiserman contributed to this report.