A wrong-way driver operating a Honda CRV allegedly plowed into about 75 jogging Los Angeles County sheriff recruits on Wednesday morning.
In what L.A. County Sheriff Alex Villanueva described as a “horrific incident” and a tragedy that perhaps resembled the aftermath of an airplane crash, 25 of the cadets were injured, five critically, in the ghastly episode that occurred during a training run near Whittier, Cal.
Paramedics rushed the future law enforcement officers, some of whom were set to join local departments upon their certification, to several area hospitals, according to CBS News.
Most of the injuries in the potential mass casualty event that occurred at about 6:30 a.m. local time are fortunately said to be moderate or minor.
With drill instructors plus eight road guards wearing reflective vests and two radio cars in the formation, this particular training exercise, which happened to occur within close proximity of a fire department station, is a routine part of the curriculum of the 22-week police academy curriculum, which for this group was in week eight.
The southbound SUV driver, age 22, who allegedly crossed into the northbound lane, passed a field sobriety test with a zero rating on a Breathalyzer, according to the sheriff.
An investigation by the California Highway Patrol into the cause of the accident, and so forth, is ongoing. Cops reportedly executed a search warrant on the motorist’s home on Wednesday evening.
Watch what purports to be a home surveillance video that captures the frightening incident:
**WARNING: Video contains graphic footage**
Villanueva, who served as a training officer earlier in his career, also explained that “injuries included head trauma and broken bones, and ‘we have had some loss of limb,’ noting that one of the five critical patients ‘is currently on a ventilator,'” the Los Angeles Times reported.
The sheriff characterized some of the injuries as life-altering and asserted that “There was so many bodies scattered everywhere in different states of injury that it was pretty traumatic for all individuals involved.”
“Recruits were running in four columns when a vehicle approached at 30 to 40 mph, Villanueva said. Those at the front of the column were able to get out of the way before the SUV struck others and then crashed into a light pole,” the Times added.
“Thank God for that light pole, because the vehicle ultimately hit it and stopped, as opposed to possibly hitting more recruits,” another sheriff’s department official commented.
The sheriff acknowledged that “injuries are not uncommon in the academy, such as broken bones and shrapnel wounds. But Wednesday’s crash was uncharted territory,” NBC News reported.
Sheriff Villanueva, a sometimes controversial law-and-order Democrat who often clashed with the woke L.A. County board of supervisors, lost his bid for reelection to former Long Beach PD chief Robert Luna after the completion of the vote count following last week’s elections.
Watch a presser conducted by Sheriff Villaneuva and other officials embedded below:
Note: All suspects are presumed innocent until or unless they are convicted in a court of law of any alleged crimes.
Republished with permission from American Wire News Service.
DONATE TO BIZPAC REVIEW
Please help us! If you are fed up with letting radical big tech execs, phony fact-checkers, tyrannical liberals and a lying mainstream media have unprecedented power over your news please consider making a donation to BPR to help us fight them. Now is the time. Truth has never been more critical!
[email protected]
Robert Jonathan is a staff writer for BizPac Review. He is a longtime writer/editor for news aggregation websites and has also developed content in the legal and financial publishing sectors as well as for online education. He earned a Juris Doctorate from the University of Connecticut School of Law, “a law school the basketball teams can be proud of.”
- ‘Petty heffa’: The View’s Ana Navarro skewered for cracking on Marjorie Taylor Greene’s appearance - December 4, 2022
- Women’s college volleyball game features incredible rally complete with diving, table-crashing safe - December 4, 2022
- Wild brawl breaks out at Fitness Connection gym, takes deciding turn when woman enters picture - December 4, 2022
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.
BPR INSIDER COMMENTS
Scroll down for non-member comments or join our insider conversations by becoming a member. We'd love to have you!
