Crash Into Pillar Kills Off-Duty LAPD Officer, 25
An off-duty Los Angeles Police Department officer who was being followed by colleagues Tuesday slammed her sport utility vehicle into a concrete pillar under the Golden State Freeway, killing herself, authorities and witnesses said.
The air bag on the officer’s black late-model Chevrolet Suburban deployed, but the 25-year-old officer from the LAPD’s Foothill Division was pronounced dead at the scene, authorities said.
The officer, whose name was withheld, was not wearing a seat belt when the crash occurred about 5:10 p.m.
Lt. Anthony Alba, an LAPD spokesman, said the crash appeared to be a suicide. Further investigation was needed to rule out a mechanical malfunction of the vehicle and to determine whether she may have accidentally pressed the gas pedal instead of the brake, Alba said.
“Police were trying to get her to pull over,” said LAPD Cmdr. David Kalish.
Officials said the officer had worked at the Foothill station earlier in the day.
Police sources said the officer had personal problems. Kalish said she was not a suspect in any crime.
An LAPD psychologist was at the Foothill station to console grieving friends and family late Tuesday, police said.
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