Las Vegas Sun

March 29, 2024

Los Angeles County patrol car collision kills 2 children

LOS ANGELES — A Los Angeles County Sheriff's patrol car on an emergency call ran onto a sidewalk, killing two small boys and critically injuring their mother, authorities said Friday.

Two other people in a crosswalk were also injured in the Thursday night crash in the Boyle Heights neighborhood.

A makeshift memorial of flowers, stuffed animals and candles marked the spot on Friday.

"We extend our deepest condolences to the families and all those affected by this tragic accident" according to a Sheriff's Department statement. The department said it is cooperating with a Los Angeles police investigation.

The crash occurred at around 7:30 p.m. Thursday at a Whittier Boulevard intersection as deputies were responding to a report of a gunshot victim, Los Angeles city police Capt. Alfonso Lopez said.

Investigators didn't immediately say whether the patrol car was using its lights and siren.

The deputies' sport utility vehicle collided with another car, ran off the road and hit the woman and her two boys, ages 7 and 9. One child died at the scene and the other at a hospital, authorities said.

The other car hit a third car that struck two adults in a crosswalk, according to the Sheriff's Department statement.

They and two sheriff's deputies were treated for minor injuries.

The mother remained hospitalized in critical condition, authorities said. Her name wasn't immediately released.

It was the third accident involving a law enforcement vehicle in a single day.

Leticia Ramirez, 15, died at a hospital Thursday night after she was struck by a sheriff's patrol car in Riverside County.

The girl ran into the street in Perris and was struck by the vehicle, which wasn't using its lights or siren operating, authorities said.

A 25-year-old man was struck by a Riverside police car as he stepped off a center divider into its path early Thursday morning, police said. He was hospitalized in critical but stable condition.