Man pleads guilty to hit-and-run in Escondido teenage girl's death

VISTA - A man who struck and killed a 17-year-old girl with his SUV in Escondido last summer, then drove off, pleaded guilty today to a felony hit-and-run charge.

Paul Anthony Lissona, 30, of Escondido, also pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of driving while his license was suspended due to a prior DUI conviction.

Kirsten Rain Tomlinson was with three friends when she was struck on June 6, 2020, at about 12:35 a.m. on Mesa Rock Road near Mesa Ranch Drive by a vehicle heading northbound at high speed.

She died at the scene, despite efforts by her friends and nearby neighbors to render aid, according to the California Highway Patrol.

The California Highway Patrol called on the public to be on the lookout for a white Toyota Highlander with front-end damage in connection with the fatality. A citizen's tip led to Lissona's arrest the day after the teen was killed.

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