A San Diego man, accused of running over a woman in a downtown parking lot and fleeing the scene, will stand trial.
Ricardo Avila Carrillo, 34, was bound over for trial Wednesday on a felony hit-and-run charge. He pleaded not guilty to the charge in a previous court appearance.
Carillo is accused of driving over a woman in a parking lot at Imperial and 13th on May 12. San Diego police said he paused for a second, got out of the driver's seat, screamed for help, and then fled the scene.
The victim, a 49-year-old woman, was rushed to the hospital with injuries to her hands, face and neck.
At a pretrial hearing on Wednesday, Angela Davis testified about video she took of the incident. Davis was riding on a bus across the street from the parking lot when she saw people running and heard people yelling or screaming for help.
When she saw people trying to lift a vehicle, she immediately pulled out her phone and began to record video.
Even though her video did not capture the license plate of the vehicle, Davis said she called the police to offer it to them as part of the investigation.
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“If there was technology that could pull up that information and catch that guy and bring him to justice, it would be worth it,” she testified.
Davis' video was entered into evidence.
Under cross-examination, Davis confirmed she did not see the moment the vehicle struck the victim, seeing only the aftermath.
San Diego County District Attorney's Office Investigator Steve Hutchinson testified the victim had a vague recollection of what happened on May 12.
"She had a vague memory of some female in a fluorescent pink shirt assisting her in some way prior to the incident," Hutchinson said.
Under cross-examination, Hutchinson also testified the victim told him she had been drinking alcohol before the incident when she decided to stop in the parking lot.
"She was carrying some shoes that she just bought from the shoe shop and that they became very heavy and she had to stop and put them down," he said.
The defendant learned he had two criminal cases in San Diego in May 2013 and July 2016.
Carrillo pleaded guilty to felony evading, possession of heroin and grand theft in 2013. He was sentenced to one year behind bars and three years' probation.
Because he was found to be driving with a suspended license, the judge ruled the defendant's probation will be revoked.
Carrillo had his license suspended in January 2016 for driving under the influence. The DMV told NBC 7 Carillo was also cited in April of 2016, four months after his license was suspended, for failure to stop at a red light. One month later, in May 2016, he was cited for driving with a suspended license from his DUI.
Anyone with information can call the San Diego Police Department at 619-531-2000, or the anonymous Crime Stoppers tip line at 888-580-8477.
