County coroner identifies girls who lost lives in separate collisions

The victims died in crashes on the last two days of 2020

SAN JOSE >> Authorities have formally identified two 9-year- old girls who were hit and killed by drivers in separate collisions on the final days of 2020, according to the Santa Clara County Medical Examiner- Coroner’s Office.

The tragic deaths marked a year where 49 people were killed on San Jose roadways, among them 20 pedestrians and seven bicyclists.

On Dec. 30, police and emergency personnel were called at about 1:45 p.m. to Kowloon Auto Sales on Monterey Highway north of East Capitol Expressway after a pickup truck driver hit a girl in the dealer lot.

An initial police investigation determined that the driver was moving the truck off a vehicle trailer and hit the girl after she jumped onto the trailer into the truck’s path. She was rushed to the hospital, where she died from her injuries.

Monday, she was identified by the coroner’s office as Paytin Mae Osmond of Kaufman, Texas. The driver has not been cited or arrested.

In a separate incident the next day, at about 11:15 a.m., police say another 9-year- old girl was riding an electric bike near Santee and McQuesten drives behind Santee Elementary School when the driver of a 2017 GMC Sierra truck hit her while entering the driveway of an apartment complex.

The girl died a short time later at a local hospital. She has since been publicly identified as Layla Marie Lemas of San Jose. T he driver has also not been arrested or cited.

Anyone with information about either incident can contact the SJPD traffic investigations unit at 408-2774654.