| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: December 23, 2024
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Second-striker Charged with Hitting, Killing 67-year-old Woman While Leading Police on High-Speed Pursuit Through Orange County After Stealing Legos from Fullerton Grocery Store
Repeat thief is accused of being under the influence of drugs during police chase that reached nearly 90 miles per hour on surface streets.
SANTA ANA, Calif. – A second-striker who stole Legos from a Fullerton grocery store has been charged with felony gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated for hitting and killing an innocent drive after running a red light during a high-speed police pursuit while under the influence of drugs last week. The pursuit reached speeds of nearly 90 miles per hour on surface streets.
Anthony Michael Hanzal, 43, of Anaheim, has also been charged with one felony count of evading a peace officer causing death, and one felony count of petty theft with two prior convictions.
He faces a maximum sentence of 26 years and four months in convicted on all counts. Hanzal is currently being held without bail. He is scheduled to be arraigned on January 6, 2025 at the North Justice Center in Fullerton in Department N12.
On Wednesday, December 18, 2024, an undercover Fullerton police officer saw a man, later identified as Hanzal, grabbing boxes of Legos and stuffing them in a bag at a Fullerton Albertsons grocery store and then leaving the store without paying.
The plain clothes officer followed the man’s car in an unmarked police car and called for a marked vehicle to make a traffic stop. When the uniformed police officer tried to pull the suspected thief over, he made a quick right turn onto Brookhurst and sped off.
Hanzal rear-ended a vehicle stopped at a red light and took off, getting on the 91 freeway westbound, before exiting at Knott Avenue in the City of Buena Park, where Buena Park police officers took over the pursuit. The high-speed chase continued through the City of La Palma, where La Palma police officers took over the pursuit, reaching speeds of approximately 90 miles per hour on La Palma Avenue.
At the intersection of La Palma Avenue and Moody Street, Hanzal is accused of running a red light and colliding with the driver’s side of a vehicle, instantly killing 67-year-old Marianne Mildred Casey who was behind the wheel.
The impact of the crash pushed both vehicles into other cars, injuring other bystanders. Hanzal is accused of being under the influence of drugs at the time.
“Enough is enough. Actions have consequences and I am mad as hell that an elderly woman is dead because a drug addicted repeat thief decided to steal Legos from a grocery store and then lead multiple police agencies on a high-speed chase through Orange County in the middle of the day,” said Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer. “Marianne Casey’s family should be planning their holiday celebrations and instead they are planning a funeral because California’s soft-on-crime policies have created an environment where there is no accountability. Those days are over, and while may be of little comfort to Marianne Casey’s loved ones, if you commit crimes in Orange County, there will be consequences for your actions and there will be justice for victims.”
Deputy District Attorney Devin Campbell of the Homicide Unit is prosecuting this case.
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