A third family member died Tuesday from injuries suffered in a New Year’s Eve crash in the Harvard Park area of Los Angeles that police say was caused by a driver fleeing from an earlier hit-and-run crash.
The crash occurred around 11:20 p.m. Sunday, with investigators saying the driver of an SUV was traveling at high speed while fleeing from the earlier collision, then ran a stop sign at 60th Place and Normandie Avenue, slamming into a sedan occupied by a family of four.
Los Angeles Police Department Detective Ryan Moreno told reporters Tuesday said the crash “was so violent” that it sent the family’s car careening through a street sign and a fence, coming to rest outside a nearby business. Moreno said some people who heard the crash described it as sounding like an “explosion.” He said several good Samaritans ran to the scene and “tried to do what they could.”
However, the family father died at the scene. His 5-year-old daughter died at a hospital. The mother, who was in the front passenger seat, was hospitalized with major injuries, but police said she died Tuesday. A year-old girl, who is expected to turn 2 next week, remained hospitalized but was showing signs of improvement, police said.
According to police, the family had just moved to the area from Colombia about a year ago.
The 22-year-old driver of the SUV was also taken to a nearby hospital and being treated for serious non-life-threatening injuries. Investigators said he is facing possible murder or gross vehicular manslaughter charges. Police said they suspect the driver was impaired at the time.
“We’ve just come through the holidays, which should be a time of celebration and renewal for all of our communities,” LAPD Deputy Chief Donald Graham told reporters. “And yet we’ve had four (fatal crashes) over the weekend that has resulted in the loss of six human lives in the city of Los Angeles due to traffic collisions. Last year, we’re going to end up with almost as many people killed in traffic collisions as we did by violent homicide.”