SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — A University of San Diego student died after being struck by a San Diego Police officer in the Morena neighborhood Wednesday morning.
San Diego Police said an officer was driving a marked department vehicle westbound on the 5800 block of Linda Vista Road around 1:30 a.m. when the crash happened.
"The officer felt an impact on his vehicle. The officer turned their vehicle around and discovered a man lying in the roadway," the department said.
Police said the officer rendered first aid. The man was then taken to the hospital, where he later died.
"It is unclear, at this time, why the person entered the roadway. The officer was not injured during the collision," police added.
Linda Vista Road between Brunner and Goshen Streets was closed for several hours as a result of the collision.
Cole Shepard, who lives near the crash site and crosses Linda Vista Road daily to access stairs leading to campus, said the stretch of road sees frequent pedestrian activity at all hours.
"It's not uncommon to be crossing like jaywalking, crossing the street to get to school, even late at night. People study late in the library or just finishing research late," Shepard said.
Shepard says he learned the student killed was someone he knew personally.
"Horrible. I knew him. He was my direct neighbor freshman year in the dorms. Took class with him," Shepard said.
Shepard said the loss will be felt widely among those close to the student.
"My roommate here was his like roommate freshman year, and other roommates are like good friends with him, so like it's definitely like gonna be a shock to the whole house, and we just found out," Shepard said.
USD released a statement following the crash.
"The University of San Diego campus community is deeply saddened by the tragic loss of one of our students who was struck early this morning by a vehicle near the campus," the university said.
Anyone with information on the crash is asked to call the SDPD Traffic Division at 858-495-7800.
