Woman falls from truck doing ‘donuts,’ which hits and kills her, California cops say

A pickup truck doing “donuts” in a parking lot hit and killed a woman who had just fallen from the vehicle, California police reported.

The fatal accident took place at about 11:55 p.m. Friday, Sept. 13, the San Jose Police Department said in a Sept. 16 news release.

A white 2006 Ford pickup truck occupied by a male driver, a woman and two men was doing “donuts” in the parking lot, police said.

“Donuts” are street stunts in which a driver spins a vehicle in tight circles at high speed while the rear wheels do a burnout, according to Carparts.com.

The woman fell from the front passenger seat onto the pavement, where she was hit by the truck, police said.

The driver took the woman to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead, police said.

On Tuesday, Sept. 17, the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner’s Office identified her as Paulina Verduzco Mendoza of Gilroy, KRON reported.

Officers arrested the driver, who was not named, on charges of vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence, police said.

Police ask anyone with information regarding this case to contact detectives at 4103@sanjoseca.gov or 408-277-4654.

San Jose is about a 55-mile drive southeast from San Francisco.

This story was originally published September 17, 2024 at 12:17 PM with the headline "Woman falls from truck doing ‘donuts,’ which hits and kills her, California cops say."