Motorcyclist, 44, Badly Injured In I-15 Hit-And-Run Crash

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, CA — A hit-and-run collision on Interstate 15 in North County San Diego left a motorcyclist severely injured Friday.

The 44-year-old Murrieta man was southbound through Escondido when a small brown SUV alongside him veered into his lane, strking his 2014 Yamaha north of state Route 78 shortly after 6:30 a.m., according to the California Highway Patrol.

The impact sent the motorcyclist tumbling onto the roadway, but the SUV continued on and left the area, said CHP public-affairs Officer Mark Latulippe.

Medics took the victim to Palomar Medical Center for treatment of major but non-life-threatening injuries.

Witness statements and vehicle parts recovered from the freeway indicated the SUV was a 2014 model or newer Kia Soul that sustained driver's side damage, including a sheared side mirror, Latulippe said.

Anyone with information about the hit-and-run driver or vehicle was asked to call the CHP at 858-560-0474.

—City News Service