THOUSAND OAKS : Fatal Crash Involving Deputy Investigated
Traffic officers on Monday were investigating a fatal crash involving a Ventura County sheriff’s deputy that claimed the life of a Thousand Oaks man over the weekend.
Angel Eduardo Melendez Martinez, 25, was thrown from his car and killed when his car was broadsided by a sheriff’s cruiser driven by Deputy Brad Guzzard.
Guzzard had been driving the 1991 Ford Crown Victoria cruiser along Westlake Boulevard at 2:45 a.m. Sunday when Martinez drove across the road and into his path, said Lt. Mike Brown, who is investigating the crash.
Guzzard suffered back and neck sprains in the crash, and will be off duty for at least five days, Brown said.
Martinez and two of his passengers, who suffered minor injuries, apparently were not wearing seat belts, he said.
“A witness who saw the crash said the officer was approaching a green light, and (Martinez’s) car came out from the right-hand side and practically drove in front of the unit,” Brown said.
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