Monday, March 24, 2025

Hearing Date to be Set for Man Charged in Fatal Pasadena Hit-and-Run

Surveillance video captured the moment a speeding Lincoln Navigator struck a Nissan Verda at the intersection of North Raymond Avenue at Penn St. in Pasadena on Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023. [Pasadena Police Dept.]

Altadena resident faces multiple felony counts after crash that killed two

A preliminary hearing date is scheduled to be set on Tuesday, March 25 for Jeffrey Butler, an Altadena man charged in connection with a hit-and-run crash that killed two people in Pasadena last year.

Butler, 30, faces two felony counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one felony count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death or serious injury. He is also facing a parole violation charge. Butler has remained in custody since his arrest in October 2023.

Authorities allege Butler was driving a stolen Lincoln Navigator SUV that collided with a Nissan Versa at the intersection of North Raymond Avenue and Penn Street on October 18, 2023, at approximately 9:17 p.m.

The crash killed Antonio Mendoza-Hernandez, 63, of Los Angeles, who was pronounced dead at the scene. A second victim, Veralice Yanira Membreno Orellana, 33, of Altadena, later died at a hospital from injuries sustained in the collision.

According to police reports, a man reportedly identified as Butler fled on foot after the crash. Surveillance video captured the moment of impact, showing the speeding Navigator striking the Nissan.

The Pasadena Police Department’s Traffic Section identified Butler as a suspect and arrested him on October 19, 2023, just outside his home in Altadena. Following his arrest, police served a search warrant at his residence.

Butler pleaded not guilty to all charges during his arraignment on October 24, 2023.

The hearing, scheduled for 8:30 a.m. in Department H of the Pasadena Courthouse at 300 E. Walnut St., will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to allow the case against Butler to proceed to trial.

The case was initially presented to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office on October 23, 2023. The Pasadena Police Department has urged anyone with information about the collision to contact them at (626) 744-4241 or report information anonymously to Crime Stoppers.

Butler is presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.