Wrong way driver arrested for DUI, hit-and-run of pedestrian

A wrong-way driver struck a pedestrian this morning on Skid Row, tossing him 20 feet then fleeing the scene before police launched a pursuit and arrested him, authorities said.

The accident happened near Fifth and Los Angeles streets around 2:30 a.m., said Lt. Nate Williams of the Los Angeles Police Department's Central Traffic Division.

"A gray VW was eastbound on Fifth Street toward Los Angeles, which is a westbound street, when it struck the pedestrian," Williams said. "It threw him 20 feet and fled. The pedestrian sat holding his chest."

Police officers followed the suspect's car and stopped him at Sixth Street and Ceres Avenue, the lieutenant said.

The pedestrian was taken to USC Medical Center, where he was unconscious, on a ventilator and undergoing a CT Scan, Williams said. Doctors expected him to survive.

The suspect was going to be booked for suspicion of DUI, he said.

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