JUDGE ORDERED CAL POLY TESLA CRASH SUSPECT TO STAND TRIAL
Lilianne Burke and Zoey Archibald were crossing a San Luis Obispo street with friends on January 8, 2026, when a gray Tesla allegedly hit them.
On October 19, 2026, a judge ruled that Ishan Pandhare, 20 at the time, must stand trial over the Cal Poly Tesla crash. The judge found enough evidence to hold him to answer on all five criminal counts, the San Luis Obispo Tribune said.
“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.
Both women were 19 then. They were headed out with friends to celebrate a birthday near Crandall Way and Foothill Boulevard, according to the civil complaint they later filed.
“Run over garbage in the roadway”
That complaint, which the New York Post detailed, alleges Pandhare was doing about 60 mph in a 25 mph zone. It says he did not brake, sound a warning or make any noticeable effort to slow down before or after striking the women, then left without stopping to help.
The filing describes the women as “left like run over garbage in the roadway.”
An ambulance took them to a trauma hospital. Their injuries were major but not life-threatening, though the complaint says they needed surgery and continued medical treatment. San Luis Obispo police later identified Pandhare and arrested him.
Prosecutors charged him on February 2, 2026. Three of the counts are felonies: DUI causing injury, reckless driving causing specified injury, and hit-and-run causing injury. The other two are a misdemeanor hit-and-run count involving property damage and a speeding infraction.
Pandhare pleaded not guilty at his February 4, 2026 arraignment and denied the sentencing enhancements, which relate to serious injuries and multiple victims, Mustang News reported.
“So many layers of failure”
Burke and Archibald did not stop at the criminal case. On July 10, 2026, they sued in San Luis Obispo County Superior Court, seeking unspecified damages for injuries, medical expenses and emotional suffering. They reserved the right to seek punitive damages.
The suit goes well beyond the driver. It names other students and the Kappa Sigma fraternity, and alleges alcohol was provided to an underage student and that dangerous drinking practices, including hazing, were involved.
According to the complaint, Anna Grillo hosted a birthday gathering at her private residence where Pandhare was given alcohol. It says Kappa Sigma members Aidan Jameson Kennedy and Kip Stackle organized or hosted another gathering.
The complaint further alleges Kennedy owned the Tesla and handed Pandhare the keys even though he knew, or had reason to know, that Pandhare was intoxicated and unfit to drive. Fraternity members, the suit says, routinely borrowed and drove one another’s vehicles.
Burke’s attorney, Christopher Dolan, laid out the theory in a statement to the Tribune.
“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 called the suit “a wake-up call to the alcohol culture in colleges and universities.” Emison said his side would “find all persons who are responsible in any way for this tragedy and hold every one of them accountable.”
Pandhare posted $150,000 bail and was suspended from Cal Poly, International Business Times UK reported. He has pleaded not guilty, and he has not been convicted of anything.
