SAN DIEGO (Court TV) — A California man is standing trial on multiple charges in the hit-and-run death of a popular bartender.
Brandon Janik sits in court during his murder trial. (Pool/Court TV)
Brandon Allen Janik is charged with murder, gross vehicular manslaughter, felony hit-and-run and felony DUI for the crash that killed Joshua Gilliland, 47. Gilliland was on his way to work at Cheers, a bar where he had worked for more than 20 years when he was killed, KUSI reported.
Gilliland was crossing the street in a crosswalk on June 10, 2023, when a vehicle ran through a red light and hit him. After the crash, the vehicle involved fled the scene. Gilliland died from his injuries four days later.
In September, the San Diego Police Department announced it had arrested Janik after an “extensive investigation.”
At a preliminary hearing, investigators testified that Janik had been driving a rented BMW at the time of the crash, SDNews reported. Janik allegedly told workers that the BMW was damaged when he backed into something and heard “a thump.”
Janik’s attorney told the jury in opening statements that prosecutors can’t prove his client was drunk, and that Janik “freaked out” after hitting the victim, according to KNSD.
Janik was previously convicted of DUI in 2016, which is why prosecutors were able to charge him with murder in Gilliland’s death, KNSD reported. In that incident, Janik was behind the wheel when his car veered off the road, rolled over multiple times and left him with “nearly life-threatening injuries.”
