LUCERNE VALLEY MAN HIT AND KILLED BY CAR

A 65-year-old Lucerne Valley man was struck by a car and killed early Thursday on Highway 18. The man, whose name was not released because his relatives haven’t been notified, was hit at 5:44 a.m. on Highway 18, east of Custer Avenue in Lucerne Valley, California Highway Patrol officers said. He stepped onto the road into the path of an eastbound 2010 Jeep Wrangler. Officers said the driver, Patrick Townes, 46, of Lucerne Valley, had no time to avoid the pedestrian. Eastbound lanes were blocked about two hours due to the crash.