Man held in fatal hit-and-run of federal judge’s son, police say
Los Angeles police have made an arrest in a hit-and-run collision that killed a 23-year-old Pacific Palisades film director whose father and grandfather are federal court judges.
LAPD Det. John Skaggs said a man was arrested Thursday evening in connection with the death of David Pregerson.
The suspect was in the process of being booked on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter Thursday night. Skaggs said the man was expected to be arraigned at the Airport Courthouse on Monday. The detective did not release additional information.
[Updated 8:30 a.m. PDT, May 2: Police have since identified the suspect as Michael Vuong, 66, of Palms, a neighborhood near Culver City. Authorities say he was booked on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter.]
Pregerson was hit by a vehicle at 3 a.m. Dec. 27, 2013, as he was walking on Chautauqua Boulevard north of Borgos Place. The driver fled southbound and did not stop to render aid, according to city officials. Pregerson was taken to a hospital and died from his injuries four days later.
Two rewards totaling $100,000 were offered in March as Los Angeles police investigators continued their search for a suspect. At the time, U.S. District Judge Dean D. Pregerson, the victim’s father, called on the perpetrator to surrender, saying he and his wife are “not looking for blood.”
“We are prepared to be compassionate,” he said as he stood with investigators. “We are prepared to urge understanding. But only if you come forward.
“If the resources of the Los Angeles Police Department, our family and friends find you, and you have turned down the opportunity to do the right thing, then I will feel just the opposite.”
Police investigators previously said a Volvo, as well as several other cars, were driving in the area at the time of the accident and authorities had surmised that suspect probably lived in the Pacific Palisades area.
Since graduating from UCLA, David Pregerson had begun working on movies and television shows, including the Web-based soap opera series “The Bay.”
Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin, who represents the area where the accident occurred, previously described the victim as a “promising filmmaker” struck down by someone who “fled in the dark of night.”
Twitter: @MattStevensLAT
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
