A judge on Jan. 28 ordered an alleged drunk driver to stand trial on two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter in the deaths of his two passengers in La Jolla when he struck two trees on Girard Avenue and crashed in 2020.
San Diego Superior Court Judge Aaron Katz said Peter John Meno, 27, was “driving at a high rate of speed” when he lost control of the Nissan Altima at 3:15 a.m. that resulted in the deaths of Jayden Rowley, 22, of Oceanside, and Matthew Cate, 19, of Vista.
Katz said Meno’s driving was “quite frightening” and he may have struck a curb at 50 mph in which a front wheel came off the vehicle on Nov. 22, 2020 after Meno made a left turn onto Girard Avenue from Torrey Pines Road.
“This was a tragic, tragic, tragic case where two innocent lives were lost,” said Katz at the end of the preliminary hearing.
Deputy District Attorney Cally Bright argued there was gross negligence involved on the part of Meno, saying he was driving with .11 to .14 blood/alcohol level at the time. It is a felony to drive with .08 blood/alcohol level.
Meno’s attorney, Jodi Green, argued there was no gross negligence involved as one passenger was “joyriding” by sticking his head out of the window and both passengers had unfastened their seat belts.
Katz disagreed, saying “there is probable cause” and ruled that Meno committed vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence while intoxicated.
A trial date of May 16 was set. Meno then pleaded not guilty to all charges which also include two counts of drunk driving with making an unsafe lane turning movement.
Meno, of San Diego, was allowed to remain free on $100,000 bond.
A number of friends and family of the deceased victims attended the 1 ½ day preliminary hearing in person as well as those who watched it online.
Meno was driving on a suspended license at the time of the crash due to failure to appear in court and a probation violation, according to testimony.
Several witnesses said one victim’s head injuries may have occurred because he had his head out the window and was struck by a tree, resulting in a skull fracture.
Officer Richard Wright testified he evaluated Meno as he was recovering from injuries at Scripps La Jolla Hospital and said he did poorly on various tests to determine if he was under the influence of alcohol.
Wright said he determined Meno was intoxicated five hours after the crash. He said Meno took 26 steps in his room when asked to take nine steps and missed several times when asked to touch his nose with his finger. He said Meno was “swaying” when he stood.
Former detective Stephanie Ott said she found a partially full bottle of vodka in the car’s back seat.
A District Attorney investigator testified he interviewed a witness who could not testify because he had COVID-19 and told the judge what the person told him.
