Collision With Deputy’s Car Kills 1, Injures 2

An early morning collision in La Puente on Friday left a man dead, a boy slightly injured, and a sheriff’s deputy in critical but stable condition, a sheriff’s spokeswoman said.

The unidentified man was killed at 2 a.m. when his sports car collided with a patrol car driven by Deputy Brian Degen, 30, at Sunset and Nelson avenues, Deputy Carrie Stuart said.

A 17-year-old burglary suspect riding in the back of Degen’s patrol car was treated for minor injuries at Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina. He was booked at the hospital but later released to his parent’s custody, officials said.

Degen had arrested the youth at 1:10 a.m. in La Puente. But before they could get to the station, the deputy was called to help arrest a man suspected of stabbing someone in the eye, Stuart said.

About an hour later, Degen headed back to the Industry sheriff’s station. Witnesses said the deputy may have run a red light on Nelson Avenue and broadsided the other car, according to Stuart. An official investigation into the causes of the accident has not been completed.

The Los Angeles County Fire Department used a hydraulic rescue device to pry open the patrol car and pull out the deputy.

Degen was airlifted to Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, where he is being treated for a collapsed lung, broken pelvis, fractured ribs and a broken ankle, Stuart said.