San Diego man stands trial for manslaughter of paddleboarding girl, 12, 'he struck with jet ski moments after being warned he was going far too fast'

A San Diego man is facing manslaughter charges for allegedly striking and killing a 12-year-old girl on a jet ski after being warned that he was going too fast.

Arsanyous Ghaly, 19, is accused of killing the girl, only identified as Savannah, in July 2023 while she was paddleboarding on Mission Bay, near De Anza Cove.

She was struck about 30 feet from the shore on a day with perfect conditions. 

First responders tried to revive her after she was brought to shore, but she was declared dead at the hospital. 

Lifeguard John Kerr testified in a preliminary hearing Monday that before the fatal accident, he stopped a man on a green jet ski and gave him a warning, as reported by NBC San Diego. 

Arsanyous Ghaly, 19, is accused of killing the girl, only identified as Savannah, in July 2023 while she was paddleboarding on Mission Bay, near De Anza Cove

The lifeguard said the man, who he identified as Ghaly, was traveling at an 'incredibly high rate of speed' near the cove, where the speed limit is five miles-per-hour.

Another witness said the jet ski raced towards the girl at about 30 to 35-miles-per-hour. 

Kerr added that moments after he stopped Ghaly, another man with an identical jet ski was pulled over for speeding.  He said the man was Ghaly's cousin, and that he was acting in a belligerent manner and refused to hand over his boater's card.

The lifeguard then claimed that Ghaly drove to the area where the second man was stopped, and crossed dangerously close to his boat.

Kerr said he told the men: You’re gonna hurt somebody or you’re gonna hurt yourselves.'

The second driver's jet ski was then impounded and Ghaly drove off. 

The lifeguard said the man, who he identified as Ghaly, was traveling at an 'incredibly high rate of speed' near the cove, where the speed limit is five miles-per-hour

As Kerr was towing the jet ski to shore, he said he heard the radio call about a crash 300 yards from where he was. 

Ghaly's lawyers called Kerr's testimony into question after he wrongly identified a man in the court as the second jet sky driver, named Peter.

However, when asked by the defense attorneys if it was possible that Kerr misidentified Ghaly, the lifeguard said: 'Doubtful.' 

Meanwhile SDPD Officer Alyssa Tutterow said Ghaly admitted he was the driver at the scene, and added he did not know the speed limit and did not have a boater's card.

Tutterow also said data from the Yamaha Jet-Ski showed the vessel was traveling at a rate of 47-53 miles per hour and there was no evidence of breaking.

A judge is set to decide whether the preliminary hearings unearth enough evidence to send Ghaly to stand trial.