A San Diego State University (SDSU) student killed while walking on the freeway had a blood alcohol content of .29 percent in her system and had drank at least eight shots prior to the tragic accident, autopsy and toxicology reports confirmed.
Jasmine Madarang, 20, was found dead in the middle of eastbound Interstate 8 near Mission Gorge and Waring roads on Sept. 16. Investigators said the college student had walked onto the westbound lanes of I-8 from the north shoulder and tried to cross the south side of the freeway when she was hit by a car.
A report released Wednesday by the San Diego County Medical Examiner’s (ME) Office said the impact from the collision threw Madarang onto the hood of the car. She then rolled off onto the roadway, and the driver ran over her. Passersby moved her body to the shoulder of the freeway, and she died at the scene.
Madarang was a junior at SDSU majoring in engineering and was a member of the university’s Delta Zeta sorority. Hours before her death, she had been tailgating with friends in Mission Valley ahead of the football game between SDSU and Stanford University.
According to the ME report, investigators learned that Madarang had spent that day with a friend. As they got ready for the football game, they took approximately eight shots of Captain Morgan Rum.
The women took the trolley to Qualcomm Stadium and friends told investigators that Madarang drank an unknown amount of beer during the tailgate party. Investigators said Madarang exchanged text messages with friends between 5:30 p.m. and 6 p.m. that evening.
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She was hanging out with a fellow sorority sister and friends but, at around 6 p.m., Madarang somehow got separated from her group. The sorority sister texted Madarang several times but received no response.
The ME report said investigators learned that Madarang took several Lyft and Uber rides around the SDSU and stadium area that day. Her last requested ride ended at 7:17 p.m. on Stadium Way near the off-ramp to Waring Road.
At 7:30 p.m., the California Highway Patrol received a call of a woman sitting on the Waring Road off-ramp. Officers found Madarang’s body near the off-ramp and freeway about a half-hour later, her broken phone and a shoe scattered nearby.
At a candlelight vigil held at SDSU for Madarang shortly after her death, friends described her as a sweet, young woman with a “heart of gold.” One friend said Madarang had the ability to connect with people and make anyone feel as though she had known them for years.
Madarang’s funeral was held on Sept. 23 in Laguna Hills, California. She was buried at the Ascension Cemetery in her hometown of Lake Forest, California. An online fundraising page created to help the student’s family surpassed its goal of $15,000.
