Driver Gets 4 Months in Jail in Man’s Death
A Canoga Park man was sentenced Friday to four months in jail for his role in a bizarre accident in which another hit-and-run driver was killed as he ran from a traffic collision.
Darius B. Smith, 32, was sentenced by Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Judith Meisels Ashmann in the June 24 accident in which Smith’s car struck and killed Saul C. Jimenez, 29, of Woodland Hills.
Smith pleaded guilty last month to a single count of felony hit-and-run driving and, in exchange, prosecutors dropped a charge of vehicular manslaughter.
Police said Jiminez had caused a minor traffic accident in Van Nuys and was running from the occupants of the other vehicle.
The other driver and a passenger chased Jiminez several blocks, caught him and wrestled him to the ground. Jiminez broke loose and dashed into Vanowen Street at Andasol Avenue, where he was struck by Smith’s car and by another car whose driver stopped.
Smith drove back and forth to dislodge Jiminez’s body, before driving away. The other driver was not charged.
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