Two drivers who struck a 13-year-old girl who was crossing Sunset Boulevard on her way to catch her school bus have not been charged in her death, Los Angeles police announced late Friday.
The preliminary investigation into the Friday morning incident raises the possibility that it was a tragic accident rather than a hit-and-run crime, as was initially believed, said Los Angeles police Capt. Nancy Lauer.
“At this point, we have not arrested nor have we booked either of the drivers,” she said. “It appears to be a horrible accident.”
Julia Siegler, an eighth-grader at Harvard-Westlake School, was struck about 7:20 a.m. and rushed to UCLA Medical Center, where she died.
Early reports indicated that Siegler was struck by two hit-and-run drivers, but police indicated at the late-night news conference that this was not the case. Instead, Lauer said, witnesses said the girl was crossing the street on a red signal and was grazed by the side-view mirror of one car, which knocked her off balance. A second vehicle, driven by a juvenile, then ran her over.
Both drivers stopped at the scene, which was described as “extremely chaotic,” Lauer said. They remained at the accident site until the girl was taken by ambulance to the hospital, Lauer said.
From the Huffington Post
Julia Siegler, a 13 year old Harvard-Westlake student, was killed in a hit-and-run incident in Brentwood this morning . Paramedics were called to the intersection of Cliffwood and Sunset Blvd. at roughly 7:20 AM. LAPD West Traffic has confirmed for the HuffPost that they are searching for a silver Mercedes, contrary to earlier reports that the car in question was black.
Anyone with any information about the incident should call the LAPD’s West Traffic Division at 213 473 0222
Police searched Friday for the driver of a gray or black Mercedes-Benz sedan that fatally struck a middle-school girl as she was crossing a street in Brentwood.
The girl was reportedly crossing on foot against a red light ahead of her mother about 7:20 a.m. as she tried to catch a school bus in the 100 block of North Cliffwood Drive, police said.
My sympathy goes out to this girl’s family. – Peter Duke
More here
A Lexus Hybrid SUV, pulling out of Lower Palisades Circle to make a left hand turn, was struck by a truck heading up Palisades Drive this morning. Only minor injuries were reported.
Several accidents have occurred at the intersection and residents of the Palisades Highlands have asked city officials, in the past, for a controlled intersection at Palisades Drive and Lower Palisades Circle. The requests were denied. The intersections in this part of Palisades Drive are particularly dangerous because the slope of the incline prevents good visibility for both drivers coming up the hill and drivers attempting to turn left.
