A man California Highway Patrol officers say they caught in the act of a hit-and-run was arrested after a brief pursuit on The Old Road earlier this month and is now being held in lieu of $75,000 bail, according to CHP officials and court records.
Jose Armando Gomez, 26, pleaded not guilty at a July 8 arraignment on three charges: two counts of hit-and-run causing property damage, which is listed as a misdemeanor, and one felony, fleeing a pursuing police officer’s motor vehicle and driving against traffic.
CHP officers patrolling July 3 in the Santa Clarita Valley were taking part in a maximum enforcement period for the holiday when they saw a hit-and-run collision around 11:41 a.m. at the intersection of The Old Road and Rye Canyon Road, according to Officer Josh Greengard, spokesman for the CHP Newhall-area Office.
“The suspect vehicle immediately tried to flee the scene of the crash and CHP officers began pursuing with lights and sirens,” Greengard wrote in an email Monday.
The charges indicate Gomez tried to evade officers by driving the wrong way on the major thoroughfare. The suspect drove for approximately 1 mile before stopping on The Old Road, south of Magic Mountain Parkway, Greengard said.
CHP officers arrested Gomez without incident and later booked him at the SCV Sheriff’s Station.
Los Angeles County Superior Court records indicated Gomez is due back in court Aug. 21 to set a date for his preliminary hearing.
At a preliminary hearing, the L.A. County District Attorney’s Office will present its case and the judge will decide if there’s enough evidence to merit a trial.
