EL CAJON, Calif — A man accused of hitting a 12-year-old with his vehicle and fleeing the scene pleaded not guilty in court, as prosecutors revealed this was not his first alleged reckless driving incident.
Dani Korkis appeared in court, where his attorney entered a plea of not guilty to charges stemming from an October 22 crash that left a child unconscious with severe head injuries.
"He was in a coma initially, though things seem to be heading in the right direction, thankfully, but obviously he still has a long road ahead of him," said Natalie Scholfield, deputy district attorney for the County of San Diego.
Prosecutors say Korkis hit the 12-year-old and kept driving. The child was rushed to the hospital with severe head injuries and was initially in a coma.
According to prosecutors, surveillance footage from Korkis's parents' smoke shop shows he was aware he had hit someone.
"It is then clear from his family that he saw on the news or was notified in some way that he had hit a twelve-year-old and, despite that, still did not turn himself in," Scholfield said.
Court proceedings revealed Korkis is also facing felony evading charges from two previous incidents, including one that occurred in July. Prosecutors say Korkis failed to appear in court for a hearing related to that case, which was scheduled for last week.
The prosecutor requested the judge set bail at $500,000 for each case.
"The defendant is clearly dangerous. He has been given multiple opportunities to comply with the law, and he has failed to do so even when released on bond in previous cases," Scholfield said.
The judge set bail at $1.5 million, stating the public needs protection from Korkis.
"All which could've been avoided if he simply followed the traffic laws that everybody is supposed to do. But he doesn't do that. He constantly chooses to continue in this repetitive conduct which has ended up with a tragedy related to injury," the judge said.
Korkis is scheduled to return to court for all three cases on November 10.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
