People v. Diaz CA6

I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND

A. The accident Around 8:00 a.m. on July 23, 2013, Soledad police responded to a report of a pedestrian being run over at the intersection of Palm Avenue and Third Street. The victim, 86-year-old Rafael Mendez, was seriously injured, but conscious. He told officers he was crossing the street, but could not recall being hit by a car. Because of his severe injuries, Mendez was airlifted to San Jose Regional Medical Center. After Mendez was taken away, police interviewed two witnesses who had been driving behind a blue Chevrolet Silverado and saw it hit Mendez. The Silverado continued driving another 30 to 50 feet, then stopped. The witnesses saw the driver get out and look back. In the meantime, the witnesses had also gotten out of their car to assist Mendez. The driver, who one of the witnesses recognized as “David,” came over to where Mendez was lying in the street. The witnesses told the driver not to leave, but he told them he was just going back to park his truck on the side of the road. One of the witnesses took a picture of the truck as he did not believe the driver intended to stay on the scene. The driver was seen walking toward…