California driver fleeing park ranger dies after plummeting 75 feet off highway onto beach

PORTUGUESE BEACH, Calif. – A Northern California driver who sped away from a park ranger plunged 75 feet off a highway to his death.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports (http://bit.ly/170PikM ) the California Highway Patrol says a state parks ranger tried to stop a Ford Ranger pickup truck for multiple mechanical violations about 5 miles north of Bodega Bay on Sunday night.

But the 46-year-old male motorist refused to stop. The truck hit a milepost marker, drove across the shoulder and plummeted to the Sonoma County beach below. The man was ejected from the truck and pronounced dead at the scene. His name has not been released.

CHP Officer Jonathan Sloat says authorities are investigating whether the man was impaired or if he intentionally drove the truck off the highway.

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Information from: San Francisco Chronicle, http://www.sfgate.com