BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KERO) — A Bakersfield man is facing vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run charges after a woman was struck and killed along Belle Terrace late Saturday night, and investigators say speed and impairment may have played a role.
Bakersfield Police Department officers were dispatched to the 200 block of Belle Terrace at approximately 9:50 p.m. on March 14, 2026, in response to a vehicle versus pedestrian collision. Officers arrived to find an adult female pedestrian with major injuries. Emergency medical personnel pronounced her dead at the scene.
Preliminary investigation indicates the woman was on the south shoulder of the roadway when an eastbound vehicle veered off the road and struck her. Witnesses described the suspect vehicle as a dark sedan that fled the area eastbound after the collision.
Within less than an hour, officers located the suspect vehicle parked in front of a residence in east Bakersfield. The investigation led officers to obtain an arrest warrant for Pedro Contreras.
Contreras, a 42-year-old Bakersfield resident, was taken into custody without incident. He faces charges related to vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run causing death. Investigators believe speed and impairment were factors in the collision.
After receiving medical clearance at a local hospital, Contreras will be booked into the Lerdo Pre-Trial Facility.
The 200 block of Belle Terrace is an east-west roadway with one lane of travel in each direction, separated by double yellow lines. The posted speed limit in the area is 35 miles per hour.
The identity of the deceased will be released by the Kern County Coroner's Office.
Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to contact the Bakersfield Police Department at (661) 327-7111.
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