Two Cal Poly students have filed a sweeping lawsuit against an alleged drunk driver, fellow students and a campus fraternity after prosecutors say they were run down in a hit-and-run collision and left bleeding on a San Luis Obispo street.
Lilianne Burke and Zoey Archibald, both 19, were walking with friends to celebrate a birthday near Crandall Way and Foothill Boulevard around 9:31 p.m. On Jan. 8 when authorities say 20-year-old Ishan Pandhare struck them at roughly 60 mph in a 25 mph zone. The women suffered devastating injuries requiring surgery and ongoing medical treatment, according to the complaint filed July 10 in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court.
The lawsuit alleges Pandhare, who was below California’s legal drinking age of 21, never braked, sounded a warning or attempted to slow down before or after the violent impact. Instead, he allegedly sped away from the scene, abandoning the bloodied victims sprawled in the roadway.
“Two Cal Poly students were run over and left bleeding in the road by an underage driver under the influence who cowardly fled the scene,” Archibald’s attorney, Theo Emison, told The Tribune.
“We will find all persons who are responsible in any way for this tragedy and hold every one of them accountable for this despicable conduct.”
The complaint paints a damning picture of a booze-soaked evening allegedly enabled by multiple parties. Pandhare had been drinking at several gatherings before getting behind the wheel of a gray 2021 Tesla Model 3, the lawsuit claims.
Among those named is Anna Grillo, 21, who allegedly hosted a birthday bash at her private residence where alcohol was provided to the underage Pandhare. The complaint also points to a separate party allegedly organized or hosted by Cal Poly’s Kappa Sigma fraternity members, including Aidan Jameson Kennedy, 21, and Kip Stackle, 22.
Kennedy, who allegedly owned the Tesla, is accused of handing over the keys despite knowing or having reason to know Pandhare was intoxicated and unfit to drive. The lawsuit further claims fraternity members routinely borrowed and drove one another’s vehicles, fostering what the plaintiffs describe as a dangerous culture.
The women were “left like run over garbage in the roadway,” the complaint alleges. Both were rushed by ambulance to a trauma hospital with major but non-life-threatening injuries.
Burke’s attorney, Christopher Dolan, also blasted what he described as a staggering chain of failures leading up to the crash.
“There are so many layers of failure here that had the law been followed by any one of the people who furnished the alcohol, provided the vehicle, encouraged excessive consumption and drove the vehicle, this life-changing collision would not have happened,” Dolan told the outlet.
“The lawsuit should be seen as a wake-up call to the alcohol culture in colleges and universities: if you break the law and cause harm, you will be identified, pursued and held accountable.”
The plaintiffs accuse the fraternity and other defendants of furnishing alcohol to an underage student and fostering dangerous drinking practices, including alleged hazing. According to the complaint, the fraternity’s alleged encouragement or provision of alcohol during its activities amounted to negligent initiation, hazing and other misconduct. The women argue that the fraternity and those who allegedly supplied the alcohol helped create the dangerous circumstances that ended with them being struck.
Pandhare was later identified by San Luis Obispo police and arrested. On Feb. 2, prosecutors charged him with multiple felonies, including DUI causing injury, reckless driving and hit-and-run causing injury, along with sentencing enhancements related to the serious injuries suffered by both victims. He pleaded not guilty to all counts on Feb. 4.
Burke and Archibald are seeking unspecified damages for their injuries, medical expenses, emotional suffering and other losses, while reserving the right to pursue punitive damages.
The collision itself unfolded in seconds but has left lasting consequences for both women. What began as a birthday celebration among friends walking near campus turned catastrophic when the speeding Tesla allegedly barreled into them without warning, launching them into a months-long recovery and now a complex legal battle against multiple defendants.
A preliminary hearing for Pandhare’s criminal case is scheduled for Oct. 19.