Escondido High School students are mourning the death of a second classmate this year, ten days before he was set to graduate.
Michael Hoffman, 18, died Monday night of injuries from a traffic accident two miles north of the school.
Around 6 p.m. Monday, Hoffman lost control of his white Pontiac Firebird and crashed into a power pole at the intersection of Broadway and North Ave.
Emergency crews transported him to the hospital where he was pronounced dead about 20 minutes later.
On Tuesday, mourners showed up in small groups, shedding tears, hugging and clutching flowers to place at the makeshift memorial below the utility pole where Hoffman crashed
Hoffman, 18, was 10 days away from his graduation from Escondido High School, where friends mourn him as a "really good" friend who wanted to follow in the footsteps of his father, a retired Oceanside firefighter, by becoming a paramedic-firefighter after college studies.
"I miss him so much," said Hoffman's classmate Dylan Vilkofsky, choking back a sob at the crash site Tuesday. "He doesn't deserve this at all -- a week away from graduation."
Said fellow senior Jeff Narvaez: "Michael was a kid who could always make you smile ... he was an amazing guitarist. I really wish I could have played with him. I was always like, 'We gotta jam out together.' "
This investigation is on-going and anyone with information is asked to contact Officer Tom Venable (760) 801-3018.
