The case against the man charged with gross vehicular manslaughter in connection with the deaths of a San Luis Obispo couple last year is moving forward to trial.
A San Luis Obispo County Superior Court judge on Tuesday ruled there is enough evidence for Daniel Saligan Patricio’s case to go to trial.
Saligan Patricio was arrested Feb. 27 and has pleaded not guilty to hitting and killing Matthew Chachere and Jennifer Besser as they were walking their dog in the early evening hours on Nov. 21, 2022.
San Luis Obispo police said Saligan Patricio was speeding along Sacramento Drive when he crashed, hitting the couple, a curb, a street sign, and part of a bridge.
The prosecution alleges he was also looking at text messages at the time.
Investigators said that while police were on scene investigating the crash, Saligan Patricio either did not know or failed to tell officers that he had struck anyone.
The bodies of Chachere, Besser and their dog were found more than a day later under heavy brush after family members reported them missing.
Tuesday’s preliminary hearing was an opportunity for both sides to present evidence and call witnesses before the judge ruled whether there was enough evidence in the case for it to move forward to trial.
Saligan Patricio is out of custody but has to wear an ankle monitor and was told to surrender his driver license.
A plaque to remember Chachere, Besser and their dog, Buddy, was installed last month at the scene of the crash.
Saligan Patricio is due back in court Jan. 4.
