An Atascadero man who was hit and killed by a car on Highway 46 East in late October was identified by the Kern County Coroner’s Office as 26-year-old Emilio Garcia Mendoza.

The collision occurred on the highway in Kern County near the border with San Luis Obispo County, according to a news release from the California Highway Patrol.

Around 8:41 p.m. on Oct. 26, authorities received a report of a crash between a car and an unknown object on eastbound Highway 46 east of Kecks Road, according to the news release.

According to the release, Mendoza was walking near the first lane of the highway when a silver Lincoln Navigator driven by a 52-year-old man from Bakersfield approached him from the east in the same lane.

For unknown reasons, Mendoza stepped into the lane directly in the car’s path, the release said. The driver was unable to avoid Mendoza, hitting and killing him.

Mendoza was pronounced dead at the scene and later identified. The driver was uninjured, the release said.

Mendoza is suspected of being under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol at the time of the crash, CHP Officer Manny Garcia told The Tribune.

Chloe Shrager

The Tribune

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Chloe Shrager is the courts and crimes reporter for The Tribune. She grew up in Palo Alto, California, and graduated from Stanford with a B.A. in Political Science. When not writing, she enjoys surfing, backpacking, skiing and hanging out with her cat, Billy Goat.