Passenger Dies in Car Crash in Laguna Beach; Driver Is Jailed

The passenger in a sedan was killed early Tuesday when it spun out of control on Laguna Canyon Road and hit a eucalyptus tree, the California Highway Patrol reported.

The victim was identified by the Orange County coroner’s office as Mark Hering, 27, of Placentia.

The driver, Josh Don Weidmann, 20, was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence of drugs, CHP Officer Chris Goodwin said.

The dark, winding section of the Laguna Beach road was wet from rain but the driver’s intoxication was the main cause of the 4:20 a.m. crash, Goodwin said.

Weidmann, of Placentia, was northbound a mile north of the San Joaquin Hills toll road when his car spun across the opposing lane and off the road. The vehicle’s passenger side smashed into the massive tree.

Weidmann was in moderate condition at Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center in Mission Viejo and will be transferred later to Orange County Jail, Goodwin said.

In January 2003, a warrant for Weidmann’s arrest was issued after he failed to appear in court on marijuana possession charges, according to court records.

Neither Weidmann nor Hering was wearing a seat belt, police said. “Had the front passenger been wearing his seat belt, he would’ve been saved,” Goodwin said.

From 1994 to 2002, 12 people were killed and 617 were injured in accidents on Laguna Canyon Road, making it one of the most dangerous roads in Orange County, according to Caltrans. The widening and realignment of a four-mile stretch of the road began in January 2003 and could take several years to complete.

Times staff writer David Reyes contributed to this report.