A hit and run driver was ordered Sept. 28 to stand trial in the death of a UC San Diego student who was struck and killed on Interstate 5 on Feb. 24.
Andres Perkins, 21, was running across the freeway near an Old Town Avenue exit around 2:30 a.m. when he was struck by the 2004 Honda Accord that was allegedly driven by Corundolus Toussaint, 39.
That vehicle belonged to Toussaint’s girlfriend, and it was found abandoned at a service station at 2521 Pacific Highway with its windshield shattered, according to testimony at the preliminary hearing.
The front license plate was knocked off and was not far from the student, who was found dead in a traffic lane, according to witnesses from the California Highway Patrol.
Although it was believed Toussaint was driving by himself, surveillance cameras showed him leaving the driver’s seat and a woman exiting the vehicle from the front passenger seat at 3:10 a.m., according to District Attorney investigator Joshua Pittsley.
Pittsley told San Diego Superior Court Judge Melinda Lasater the footage showed the woman wiping the door handle as if to wipe away any DNA or fingerprints.
CHP officer Jessica Burger testified she interviewed Toussaint after his arrest and he acknowledged driving the vehicle and hitting the student. She said his purpose earlier that night was “to mingle.” Toussaint picked up a woman he did not know in Mission Beach, said Burger. She said Toussaint recalled he drove down Garnet Avenue before deciding he and the woman were going to get a hotel room in downtown San Diego.
After the student was struck, Toussaint described himself as being “in a daze and the next thing he remembered he was at the gas station,” said Burger.
Pittsley testified the vehicle entered the gas station at 2:43 a.m. and both occupants remained in the car until 3:10 a.m. before it was abandoned. They apparently went their separate ways and Toussaint did not know how to contact the woman, said Pittsley.
Lasater set trial for Jan. 7, 2019 for hit and run, causing death. He pleaded not guilty at the end of the hearing. If convicted, he faces four years in prison.
CHP officer Luis Godinez testified he went to the home of Toussaint’s girlfriend in Perris, Ca. at 3:50 a.m. in an attempt to locate him. Godinez said the girlfriend told him Toussaint had the car so he could attend a bachelor party in San Diego.
Toussaint’s attorney, Manuel Avitia, said he surrendered at a CHP office two days later. Toussaint also lived in Perris with his girlfriend. He remains in jail on $140,000 bail. Andres Perkins was from Menifee and a friend said he wanted to go to medical school.