Jonathan Ramos enjoys playing basketball with his friends, lifting weights and eating organic foods. He was a happy and healthy 16-year-old. It’s what makes it that much harder for mother Maria Martinez to see her son sedated in a hospital bed with a breathing tube stuck down his throat after he was struck during an apparent hit-and-run while riding his bike in San Marcos last week. “I wish I could switch places with him and take away his pain,” Martinez said Wednesday. Jonathan was riding his e-bike on Mission Road near Knoll Road when he was struck by a white pickup around 9 p.m. on Sept. 19, the Sheriff’s Office said. The driver fled the scene before deputies arrived. In the days that followed, deputies received a tip about the pickup’s location and found it at a home less than 2 miles from the collision scene, officials said. Sheriff’s Deputy Jerry Dana said attempts had been made to conceal damage to the truck’s body, but debris left at the scene matched the truck. On Monday, the alleged driver, a 23-year-old man, surrendered himself to the Sheriff’s Office under the advisement of his lawyer, investigators said. Jonathan Ramos holds his family dog, Honey, during his 16th birthday party. (Maria Martinez) He was booked into the Vista jail on suspicion of hit-and-run causing injury and reckless driving resulting in serious injury. His arraignment in Vista Superior Court is scheduled for Thursday afternoon. Martinez said that while she’s relieved an arrest had been made, she was upset that it took the alleged driver nearly six days, and his attorney’s advice, to turn himself in. “We all make mistakes, and we take responsibility for those mistakes,” Martinez said. “But the driver, he didn’t stop.” On the night of the incident, Martinez said Jonathan had called her from a friend’s house asking if it would be OK if he and a couple of friends went to IHOP together. The single mother, who was at home with her two other children, said it would be alright, but reminded him it was a school night. “He’s a really respectful kid,” Martinez said. Then around 9 p.m., she answered another call from her son’s phone — but was surprised when she did recognize the voice on the other end. “A man said, ‘Ma’am, your son was hit by a car,’” Martinez recounted. She later learned the man was someone from her neighborhood and the father of one of her son’s friends. Martinez said it only took her about a minute to drive to the scene, but sheriff’s deputies and paramedics had already arrived. When she was led over to her son, she found him lying on the ground unconscious, covered in blood as paramedics cut off his clothing to triage his wounds. His bike, shoes and the contents of his backpack were scattered across the road. An officer told her that her son had been hit by a truck traveling at 80 mph on the city street, she said. “I just wanted to pick him up, hold him, help him,” Martinez said. “But a sheriff said, ‘Don’t touch him; leave him.’” Jonathan was quickly taken to the hospital with multiple broken bones, internal bleeding and damaged organs — specifically his liver, spleen and lungs. He immediately underwent surgery. Since the collision, Jonathan has had one tube helping him breathe while another pumps fluid out of his lungs. Although he was originally in a coma, he has since woken up, Martinez said. But her usually “happy and kind” son is confused and aggressive because of the painkillers he’s on. Martinez’s family says they’ve been told by doctors that in the coming days, he’ll be able to breathe on his own and his medication will be reduced. While they believe these are all good signs, Martinez said she knows he has a long road to recovery, including therapy and surgeries, ahead of him. “He’s really strong, he’s really young … but it’s going to take months,” Martinez said. “But I feel grateful that I still have him and I’m not making arrangements for something else.” A GoFundMe page has been set up to help raise money for medical expenses and to support Jonathan’s family.