A driver flipped his silver sedan after hitting a parked blue car in La Mesa Sunday night, then fled on foot. The car's owner, Michael Garrod, chased him.
The crash happened Sunday night in La Mesa. Garrod's Nest camera system captured the collision and rollover, per mandatory.com's account of the footage.
The driver fled on foot, and Garrod chased after him.
A Foot Chase
Garrod chased the driver, according to CBS 8.
The station reported that Garrod's girlfriend joined the chase. The driver stopped at the end of the street, where police took him into custody.
What Happens Next Is Still Unclear
As of the report, law enforcement had not released the driver's identity or said whether he had insurance, and Garrod was still waiting on a formal police report for more details, mandatory.com noted. He and his girlfriend also told the outlet they remain unsure how their insurance claims will shake out after the crash — though a tow truck did clear the flipped vehicle from the street within an hour.
Whatever charges eventually come down could hinge on California Vehicle Code Section 20002, which governs hit-and-run cases involving only property damage. Fleeing the scene of a crash that damages a parked vehicle is a misdemeanor under that statute, carrying up to six months in county jail, up to $1,000 in fines, mandatory restitution for the property damage, and two points on the driver's record, according to the Shouse Law Group. Whether the driver was impaired at the time of the crash, and what charges the district attorney ultimately files once La Mesa Police complete their collision investigation, remain open questions.
La Mesa Police Officer Lauren Craven was killed while assisting victims at a rollover crash scene on nearby Interstate 8. The driver involved in the initial crash was killed; a separate driver who struck Craven and a man at the scene was arrested and charged with driving under the influence, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. The city's police department, which fields more than 100,000 service calls a year with 69 sworn officers and 31 civilian personnel, per the City of La Mesa.
For now, Garrod and his girlfriend are left waiting on the police report and their insurers, hoping the driver's arrest brings some resolution to a night that started with a crash outside their window and ended with a foot chase down their own street.
