18-year-old Riverside County man arrested for 10 Freeway shooting that wounded woman in Banning

An 18-year-old man was arrested in connection with a shooting on the 10 Freeway in Banning that wounded a woman last weekend. 

The shooting happened at around 1:45 a.m. on Saturday, May 9, on westbound lanes near Highland Springs Avenue, California Highway Patrol officers said at the time. An unidentified woman from Riverside, who was sitting in the backseat of a Chevrolet Suburban, sustained a gunshot wound to the arm, police said. 

Preliminary findings revealed that a black sedan pulled up alongside the Chevrolet when someone inside "leaned out of the right rear passenger side window with a handgun" and opened fire. The victim's vehicle then exited the freeway and stopped at a nearby gas station, where they called 911. She was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to CHP officers.

In an updated news release shared on Friday, May 15, CHP officers announced that a suspect had been arrested after the shooting happened. Detectives with CHP's Border Division Major Crimes Unit, CHP officers and the Banning Police Department arrested James Charles Pitchford II, of Banning, late Saturday evening on E. Ramsey Street. 

Pitchford was booked for three counts of attempted murder and had his bail set at $2 million, police said. On Friday, he was charged in Riverside County court with attempted murder, shooting at an occupied vehicle and sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations.

Officers told CBS LA that there were three occupants inside the Chevrolet when Pitchford opened fire in what appeared to be a random act of gang violence with an unsuspecting victim. 

Anyone who knows more was asked to contact CHP Border Division Major Crime Unit detectives at 858-944-6300.