Fleeing Felon Suspected of Killing Peter Mullis
RIVERSIDE – “Not many get to meet their soulmate,” a shattered and heartbroken Layla Mullis shared with a powerful but tear-driven voice. “But I actually did.”
Her husband of 11 years, Peter, or “Petey,” as she affectionately called him, is believed to have been on his lunch hour shortly before Noon on Monday, while striding in the crosswalk on Magnolia Avenue at the intersection with Park Sierra in the City of Riverside.
Up the street, Riverside City Police were making a traffic stop for an alleged code violation. According to Riverside Detective Steve Espinosa, the driver originally yielded and pulled over. But as officers approached the vehicle, the driver suddenly sped away at high speed, eastbound on Magnolia, police giving chase.
The speeding car plowed into Peter Mullis as he strode across Magnolia, the driver continuing the escape. Riverside PD says their pursuing officers pulled over immediately to administer aid.
The hit-and-run occurred on the block of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Center, where Peter Mullis worked as an X-ray technician. There, he was pronounced dead less than an hour later.
On Tuesday, Riverside Police arrested a 62-year-old Gene Amos Cunningham of Riverside, alleging he was the driver. “Cunningham has two outstanding felony warrants and is on California Department of Corrections & Rehabilitation parole for assault with a deadly weapon,” Espinosa said. “He has an extensive criminal history that includes convictions for being a felon in possession of a firearm and resisting arrest.”
After years of unsuccessfully trying to conceive a child, Peter and Layla Mullis began in vitro fertilization (IVF), which has produced a male and female embryo. Layla hopes to move forward. “It’s the only physical part that I’m going to have of him.”
The family has established a gofundme account at https://www.gofundme.com/f/remembering-peter-mullis-support-for-layla
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