Hit-and-Run in San Diego Leads to Homicide Charges

A family was left devastated after a deadly hit-and-run collision over the weekend in San Diego.

The crash occurred at about 1:45 a.m. Saturday morning on I-15 southbound at Scripps Poway Parkway near Mercy Road.

A family of four were in a Honda when a silver Cadillac CTS plowed into their vehicle. The family included a 64-year-old grandmother, a 2-year-old, a 5-year-old and the 35-year-old mother of the children.

31-year-old Grant Stewart Thoren was identified as the driver of the Cadillac. He stopped momentarily on the shoulder at the scene but then fled.

The Honda was disabled in the traffic lanes due to the collision. A few moments later, a man in a red pickup truck did not see the disabled Honda in time to avert a collision and crashed into the vehicle. That driver remained at the scene.

Emergency crews had to extricate the family from the vehicle. The grandmother and the two-year-old did not survive.  The mother and the 5-year-old were rushed to the hospital with serious injuries. A passenger in the red pickup truck was taken to a hospital with minor injuries. The driver of the truck was not injured.

Thoren was arrested at his home by 7:15 a.m. He is facing several charges including DUI, felony hit-and-run and homicide.

Thoren admitted to authorities that after the crash, he exited the freeway and drove to a gas station, where he called a tow truck to tow his vehicle home.

The tow truck driver later recognized Thoren on the news and contacted police to report that he had driven the suspect home.

California Highway Patrol officials stated that the residence of the suspect may be some kind of “sober living” home.

The driver of the pickup truck that crashed into the family’s vehicle was not driving under the influence.

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