SANTA MONICA—Officials identified a 34 year-old man who was fatally struck on Ocean Park in Santa Monica on February 1.
Daniel Chuong fell off the curb and was hit by a vehicle going northbound on Lincoln Boulevard around 7:10 a.m. Paramedics responded to the scene afterward. Chuong sustained major trauma to his head and passed away as he was being transported to a nearby hospital. The driver remained on the scene to help detectives with their investigation.
Lt. Candice Cobarrubias of the Santa Monica Police Department informed Canyon News that the driver’s speed was not a factor in Chuong’s death. The driver was also not under the influence.
According to Cobarrubias, the department is unsure why Chuong fell onto the street.
“[It] appears to be that the victim stepped out into the roadway for unknown reasons. We don’t really know. He may have tripped, stepped out off the curb too soon, we are still in the process of the investigation,” said Lt. Cobarrubias.
Chuong’s death marks the first pedestrian death to transpire in Santa Monica this year. In 2019, there were three reported pedestrian street-related deaths.
