A pedestrian was hit and killed in a crash while crossing the street in Rancho San Diego on September 3, 2024, according to California Highway Patrol.
The victim, an 81-year-old man, was crossing west on Jamacha Road/State Route 54 on the north side of the intersection with Braham Street, CHP said.
Meanwhile, a man driving a mid-2000s Toyota Corolla with faded gold paint was headed westbound on Brabham Street and making a right turn onto northbound Jamacha Road/SR-54 when he failed to yield to the pedestrian and struck him with the vehicle.
Authorities said the driver fled the scene and was last seen heading northbound on Jamacha Road/SR-54. He is described as a bald man, about 5’5″ and between 150 and 180 pounds. The victim was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital where he later died, according to officers.
The original Rancho El Cajon land grant was one of the largest ones in San Diego County. Previously a part of the San Diego Mission, the 48,000 acre grant was received in 1845 by María Antonia Estudillo, wife of Miguel Pedrorena. The grant was originally called Rancho Santa Monica, and later renamed Rancho El Cajon.
After the Mexican American War, Thomas Sutherland, the guardian of Pedrorena’s heirs, filed a claim in 1851. Sutherland was a noted pioneer who also served on the Board of Regents at the University of Wisconsin. The grant was patented in 1876.
In 1868, Los Angeles land developer Isaac Lankershim bought the bulk of the Pedrorena’s Rancho El Cajon holdings and began the community of Rancho San Diego.