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DA: Drunk-driving Marine killed doctor

SANTA ANA, Calif. — A Marine has been indicted on murder charges for driving drunk, prosecutors say, for his part in a 2008 crash that killed a radiologist and injured his wife.

The crash occurred hours after the Marine attended a military briefing about the dangers of drunken driving.

Lance Cpl. Elijah Ferguson, who remains in jail on $1 million bail, was indicted Wednesday on charges of murder and driving under the influence and will be arraigned March 25 on multiple charges, including one count of murder, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office.

The murder charge was upgraded from vehicular manslaughter after several Marines told prosecutors they made repeated attempts to keep Ferguson from driving, but he ignored them.

On Feb. 22, 2008, Ferguson slammed his vehicle into the back of a car driven by Dr. Michael Sein, 64, as the doctor and his wife were stopped at a red light in Newport Beach.

The Marine had just attended a mandatory safety briefing for President’s Day holiday weekend, and began drinking alcohol at the base earlier that afternoon, according to the DA’s office.

Several times, Ferguson insisted on driving to his home in Santa Ana, about 45 minutes north of the base, but other Marines took away his car keys and he eventually passed out in a barracks room about 7 p.m., officials said in a news release.

At 11 p.m., authorities said, Ferguson ordered a junior Marine to get him the keys, which he did, and he left the base. Prosecutors say Ferguson’s car was traveling at about 75 mph when it struck Sein’s vehicle, less than an hour later.

Ferguson, who broke an ankle in the crash, registered a .12 blood-alcohol level three hours after the crash. California’s legal limit is .08.