23-year-old killed in New Year's Day hit-and-run; suspect in custody

23-year-old killed in New Year’s Day hit-and-run; suspect in custody

Los Angeles Times

Jan. 1, 2015 12:28 PM PT

A San Clemente resident is in custody after allegedly hitting and killing a pedestrian and then fleeing the scene in Newport Beach early New Year’s Day.

Officers arrived at the collision site, at Pacific Coast Highway and Newport Coast Drive, about 3 a.m. There they found the body of 23-year-old Travis Marton. The Valencia resident was declared dead at the scene.

Ten minutes later, Laguna Beach police officers saw a car with a significant amount of damage and made a traffic stop. The motorist, Ronald Aviles, 56, is now being held in lieu of $50,000 bail at Newport Beach Police Department’s jail, pending a transfer to Orange County Jail.

Alcohol does not appear to be a factor in the crash, said Newport Beach police Sgt. Rachel Johnson.

“If there are any witnesses out there, we would like them to contact us,” Johnson said.

Twitter: @brittny_mejia

Brittny Mejia

Brittny Mejia is a Metro reporter covering federal courts for the Los Angeles Times. Previously, she wrote narrative pieces with a strong emphasis on the Latino community and others that make up the diversity of L.A. and California. Mejia was a Pulitzer Prize finalist in 2021 in local reporting for her investigation with colleague Jack Dolan that exposed failures in Los Angeles County’s safety-net healthcare system that resulted in months-long wait times for patients, including some who died before getting appointments with specialists. She joined The Times in 2014.