"General Hospital" star Haley Pullos pleaded not guilty last week to felony DUI charges stemming from a wrong-way crash in Pasadena last month.
Prosecutors charged the longtime soap opera actor with one felony count of driving under the influence of alcohol and causing injury, another felony count of driving with .08% alcohol in her blood and causing injury and one misdemeanor count of hit and run, resulting in property damage, the Los Angeles County district attorney's office said.
Pullos, 24, was arraigned June 20, appearing at a Pasadena courthouse where she entered her not guilty pleas, according to court records. The D.A.'s office had filed charges against her on June 16. Her next court appearance is scheduled for late July.
"Drunk driving remains a grave concern in our communities, claiming thousands of innocent lives each year," the DA's Office said Wednesday in a statement provided to The Times. "Charging Haley Pullos with a felony DUI causing injury underscores the severity of this alleged offense."
A representative for Pullos declined to comment on the case when contacted by The Times.
The DUI charges stem from an April 29 crash involving at least two vehicles on the 134 Freeway in Pasadena near the Colorado and Orange Grove boulevards exit , according to the Pasadena Fire Department. Fire crews had to rescue the individuals from both cars. The fire department had shared photos of the crash, showing the cars with crumpled front ends and shattered windows.
Several weeks after the crash, TMZ reported that Pullos had been driving on the freeway when she allegedly swerved, cleared the dividing barrier and crashed into a car going the opposite direction at about 60 miles per hour before slamming into the other car. Both Pullos and the driver of the other car were hospitalized. Citing a police report, TMZ added that Pullos had acted aggressively toward fire paramedics and authorities at the hospital.
Police told TMZ that Pullos was involved in a hit-and-run traffic collision on surface streets, before the freeway accident.
Earlier this month, the driver of the other vehicle filed a lawsuit against Pullos for personal injury. The suit, filed by Courtney Wilder, alleged that Pullos had driven her car in the wrong direction, up the Colorado Boulevard off-ramp and onto the 134 Freeway before she "collided head-on" with Wilder, leaving the individual with "life-threatening injuries."
Soap Opera Digest reported in May that "General Hospital" had temporarily recast Pullos' character, Molly Lansing-Davis, while the actor is on medical leave. The show has reportedly tapped Holiday Mia Kriegel to sub in starting next week.
"Unfortunately, I was involved in an automobile accident and I'm doing okay, but I am going to need a little time to recover," Pullos told Soap Opera Digest in a statement. "I will be back as soon as possible!"
Pullos made her "General Hospital" debut in 2009 at the age of 10, growing up on the show over the next decade. Her character had been born via emergency C-section while on a train immediately after a crash. She grew to be a precocious child who often meddled with the various criminal and romantic dramas around her and her family.
In her last appearance on the show May 24, her character is still reeling from a recent endometriosis diagnosis making her infertile. She gets into an argument with her partner over her symptoms and angrily walks out on him.
In 2015, Pullos was nominated for a Daytime Emmy for outstanding younger actress in a drama series.
