South Lake Tahoe man injured after being hit by drunk driver

South Lake Tahoe resident Robert Klein, 61, was hit by a drunk driver on Monday evening near the intersection of Emerald Bay Road and Lake Tahoe Blvd (the "Y"). Police arrived at the scene at approximately 5:40 p.m. and found Klein lying in the traffic lanes with his bicycle. He was struck by a mini-van driven by 57 year old Carmel Jennings of South Lake Tahoe.

South Lake Tahoe police officers have determined that Jennings was driving in the #1 traffic lane of Emerald Bay Road towards the Y intersection. When she was near McDonald's she struck Klein on his bicycle as he was attempting to ride across the five lanes of the road towards the South Y Center.

Klein was not wearing a helmet, and had sustained significant head injuries as a result of the impact. Klein was flown to Reno for medical assistance based upon the nature and severity of his injuries.

Jennings was booked into the El Dorado County Jail on DUI charges where she is still being held Tuesday in lieu of $55,000 bail. According to jail records she is being charged with one felony count of DUI causing bodily harm and two misdemeanor counts of DUI and DUI above .08%. These charges may change.

Investigating officers are still determining the speed of Jenning’s mini-van at the time of impact, but there is no indication at this point that excessive speed was a contributing factor to this collision.