Man killed in fire after car crash Thirty-three-year-old Jared Franklin Purton, a post doctorate at Scripps Research Institute, was killed in a fiery collision on Sunday, Dec. 13 at 9:53 p.m. when a car struck his Infinity from behind as he slowed at the intersection of Torrey Pines Road and Genesee Avenue, just down the road from where he worked. Michael Landri, 30, had apparently just left a holiday party and was allegedly driving intoxicated “at a high rate of speed” with a companion in his Volkswagen when he struck Purton, according to the police report. A detective estimated that Landri was driving upwards of 70 miles per hour since the victim’s rear bumper was found in the front seat. Both cars exploded into flames, but a nearby UCSD employee heard the blast and broke the window of the Volkswagen to rescue Landri and his passenger, who only suffered minor injuries. Landri is facing charges of gross vehicular manslaughter, said SDPD spokeswoman Monica Munoz.      Prudential California holds food drive In an attempt to help the hungry, Prudential California Realty’s La Jolla office is sponsoring a food drive to benefit Feeding America San Diego. Non-perishable food can be dropped off thru Dec. 21 at the office at 1229 Prospect St. Feeding America San Diego estimates it will distribute 16 million pounds of food to 288,000 people this year. For more information call Prudential, (858) 459-0501, or visit FeedAmericaSD.org. PLJ posts loss on Gallery, Wine Walk & Taste event Promote La Jolla (PLJ) didn’t pull in the revenue it anticipated from hosting the La Jolla Gallery, Wine Walk & Taste this past November; instead, the group lost $546 on the event. PLJ had expected to make a $12,000 profit from the Nov. 5 event since the business improvement district had pulled in $10,000 the year before.   Board members cited a few factors for the revenue loss. The group had planned to sell 1,000 tickets but only sold 600, and ended up giving away 25 percent of the tickets. The event date changed from October to November, so the evening was chillier and darker than in years past. Board member Jennifer Clark said PLJ lacked momentum due to the group’s financial mess. PLJ has been without an executive director since April. Nonetheless, treasurer Daisy Fitzgerald said the event achieved its goal. “I think the galleries and some of the restaurants did well, and that was the whole point,” Fitzgerald said.