Driver kills 4 pedestrians in California

The scene of the accident is cordened off with police tape early on Saturday

ISLA VISTA , Calif. (CNN) -- Four people were killed when a driver lost control of his car on a street crowded with pedestrians near the University of California at Santa Barbara, a highway patrol spokesman said Saturday.

UCSB student David Edward Attias, 18, faces DUI and vehicular manslaughter charges in the accident, which happened about 11 p.m. Friday (2 a.m. EST Saturday), said Officer Mike Muell, a spokesman with the California Highway Patrol.

Attias is being held in the Santa Barbara County Jail.

Attias was traveling above the 25 mph speed limit in the Isla Vista community -- adjacent to the college campus -- when he veered to the right, sideswiping nine cars with his 1991 Saab sedan, Muell said.

VIDEO Officials clean up debris and assess the scene of the tragedy Play video (QuickTime, Real or Windows Media)

"He ran over five pedestrians who just happened to be walking beside those parked cars," Muell said. "Some were crunched between his vehicle and the others. His vehicle finally became disabled enough that it stopped."

Four of the pedestrians -- three men and one woman -- died at the scene. The fifth, a 27-year-old San Francisco man, was taken to Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital where he was listed in critical condition.

Two of the dead were 20-year-old UCSB students, Nicholas Shaw Bourdakis and Christopher Edward Divis, the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department said.

The department said another victim was identified as a 27-year-old San Francisco man whose family had not yet been notified. The other victim, a female in her 20s, had not yet been identified.

Muell said the suspect attempted to flee, but was held by a large group of people at the scene.

"Tests were administered to determine his sobriety," Muell said. "He was booked in the Santa Barbara County Jail, charged with felony DUI and vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence."

Said Muell: "This is probably the most horrific scene I think I've seen since being on the force 10 years here."

Report: Pedestrians more likely to be killed by car than gun
April 8, 1997

California Highway Patrol
Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department

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