A JERSEY-BORN BAFTA-winning film director was killed while crossing a street in Los Angeles after being struck by a drunk driver, an inquest has heard.
Jonathan Gales, 36, was visiting the United States in November 2022 for work when he was hit by a 39-year-old motorist on a marked pedestrian crossing while walking with a friend.
The inquest heard that the driver was travelling the wrong way on a one-way street and attempted to flee the scene before crashing into another vehicle.
Mr Gales suffered traumatic injuries to the chest, went into cardiac arrest and was taken to the California Hospital Medical Centre.
Doctors treated him but despite repeated attempts to resuscitate him, he died the following day.
Another man struck in the incident sustained serious but non-life-threatening injuries.
Mr Gales was born in Jersey in 1986 and attended St Christopher’s School and Victoria College before studying architecture at the University of Brighton.
He co-founded the London-based creative studio Factory Fifteen and won a BAFTA for his role in a trailer video for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Outside his professional work, he was an accomplished cyclist and a musician who performed at venues including the Watersplash and the BlueNote.
Mr Gales leaves behind his wife, Claire Pepper, and their two children. Their son Finley was born before his death, and Claire was expecting their second child, Phoenix, at the time of the collision.
In delivering his verdict, Advocate Cyril Whelan offered “deepest condolences” to the family, describing the case as “a terrible, terrible loss”.
