Three Hospitalized in Sheriff’s Vehicle Crash in West Athens

LOS ANGELES, CA – Two Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputies and a civilian driver were hospitalized after a late-night collision in West Athens that pushed the deputies’ vehicle into a fire hydrant and disrupted power in the area. The three people hospitalized were reported to have minor injuries, although officials had not released a later update on the civilian driver’s condition.

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Collision at Vermont Avenue and 120th Street

The crash occurred at about 11:53 p.m. Monday, Oct. 12, at Vermont Avenue and 120th Street. A Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson said the department vehicle was traveling south on Vermont Avenue when it collided with a black hatchback heading west on 120th Street.

After the initial impact, the sheriff’s vehicle veered to the right and struck a fire hydrant at the southwest corner of the intersection. The vehicle came to rest on top of the hydrant as water sprayed into the street. Both vehicles sustained major damage, and the collision caused a power outage in the immediate area.

Emergency crews transported both deputies and the hatchback driver to hospitals. The Sheriff’s Department said the deputies were expected to be discharged quickly. Officials did not identify the civilian driver or provide additional information about that person’s treatment after the initial hospitalization.

CHP Investigating the Cause

The California Highway Patrol was investigating the collision. The initial account did not state which vehicle entered the intersection first, whether either driver faced a traffic signal or stop control, or whether speed or impairment contributed to the crash. No citation or finding of fault had been announced.

Because the collision involved a county vehicle and damaged public infrastructure, the investigation encompasses more than the two vehicles’ points of impact. The hydrant strike and power interruption established where the sheriff’s vehicle traveled after the vehicles collided, but those consequences did not establish which driver caused the initial crash.

The civilian driver’s potential injury claim would depend on evidence about how the vehicles approached and entered the intersection. Any claim involving the Sheriff’s Department would also require attention to California’s shorter administrative deadlines for claims against public entities. The publicly released account did not resolve those issues, and the CHP investigation remained the principal source for determining the sequence of events.

Officials had not released the investigating unit’s conclusions or a final collision report as of Tuesday. The immediate response focused on medical care for the three occupants, the damaged hydrant and the localized outage caused after the sheriff’s vehicle left the roadway.