LAGUNA NIGUEL : Teen Suffers Serious Injuries in Crash
A Laguna Niguel teen-ager was critically injured Sunday night when the car she was riding in went out of control and hit a tree in the median of Crown Valley Parkway, the Sheriff’s Department reported.
The injured girl, Amy Christine Pestritto, 15, was listed in critical condition Monday at Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo with a head injury and fractures of her pelvis and left leg. The girl was trapped in the car after the accident and paramedics had to extract her, Sheriff’s Lt. Richard Olson said.
The driver of the car, James Paul Buck, 23, of Laguna Niguel, was hospitalized with a head injury and multiple lacerations, Olson said. He was listed in good condition.
The accident happened about 10 p.m. on westbound Crown Valley Parkway, about half a mile from Coast Highway, Olson said. Buck was driving a Volkswagen Rabbit “at what appears to be a high rate of speed” when it jumped the center divider, hit a tree, spun around and came to rest in the eastbound lanes, Olson said.
No charges were immediately filed, but the accident remains under investigation, Olson said.
Start your day right
Sign up for Essential California for news, features and recommendations from the L.A. Times and beyond in your inbox six days a week.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
