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A 21-year-old Orange County woman was left in critical condition after a tow truck reportedly hit the car she was driving from behind, according to a report in the Mission Viejo Dispatch. According to the news report, the 1995 Nissan Sentra was struck from behind by the tow truck after which the Sentra was pushed into another car, a Ford Taurus, which was stopped in front.

The report says that the 23-year-old tow truck driver, an Orange resident, failed to notice the slowing car for some unknown reason. The silver lining in this accident – a 1-year-old child placed in a car seat and sitting in the rear of the Sentra survived the crash without any injuries. Officials say the car seat saved her life.

This is certainly not the first rear-end crash on the I-5 in Mission Viejo recently. Last May, three young children died when a big rig, loaded with electronic equipment, plowed into their family’s minivan from behind because the driver was unable to stop.
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A 6-year-old Costa Mesa boy suffered critical head injuries after a crash on the 55 Freeway that officials say was caused by a drunk driver. According to a news report in the Daily Pilot, 34-year-old Morgan T. Webster of Newport Beach was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol.

The boy, whose name was not released because of his age and condition, was traveling north on the 55 with three other children and three adults in a 2000 Mazda when a Mercedes Benz slowed down in front of them. The driver of the Mazda hit the brakes and steered toward the center divider to avoid hitting the car, but the Volkswagen driven by Webster, which was behind the Mazda, did not stop in time and ended up crashing into the back of the Mazda and then into the Mercedes before flipping over, CHP officials told the newspaper.
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A drunk driver may have put the end to the life of a Compton man who worked four truck-driving jobs to support his wife and four kids, the Daily Breeze reports. Juan Gabriel Ontiveros, 32, was on his way home when his vehicle was broadsided by the driver of a Toyota pickup truck on Wilmington Avenue at Sepulveda Boulevard in Carson.

Sheriff’s deputies found a smashed case of beer and smelled alcohol in the pickup, according to the article in the Breeze. The broadside crash threw Ontiveros from his 1982 Cadillac Coupe Deville into the street. He was reportedly pronounced dead on the scene. Officials are also reportedly investigating whether the driver was drunk and if he was at fault.

Police say it is hard to figure out if the beer cans were open at the time of the crash because of the intensity of the accident. Whatever the facts of the case, one truth doesn’t change. Ontiveros’ family will be devastated by this accident. According to the newspaper article, the family had recently obtained permanent residency in the United States and bought a home last year.
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A set of quadruplets 4 years old and their 30-year-old mother survived with minor injuries in what could have been an extremely tragic accident in Costa Mesa, the Daily Pilot reports.

The accident reportedly happened on Bear Street in Costa Mesa. The mother and children, whose names have not been released, were northbound on Bear and were turning left to enter the 405 Freeway when a moving truck ran a red light and broadsided the van, the article said. The van rolled and came to a stop on the onramp entrance.

Thankfully, everyone inside was buckled up and no one was ejected. All passengers were able to get out of the van, which was on its side with its windows shattered, the Pilot reported. Traffic had to be diverted from the area as officials cleared up the scene.
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Here is a compilation of most recent auto accidents in Southern California.

Fiery fatal crash: Two people were killed and a third person was injured in a fiery three-vehicle crash on the Harbor (110) Freeway in Los Angeles, according to a news article in the Daily Breeze. Firefighters responded to a burning Ford Mustang. A man and a woman who were inside were declared dead. The driver of a large SUV suffered minor injuries and the driver of a minivan escaped without injuries. The cause of the crash is under investigation.

“I blacked out:” A female driver reportedly struck a diesel truck and another vehicle on the 10 Freeway in Fontana after “blacking out” when she was driving. The accident did not cause any major injuries.
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Former New York Yankees catcher Jim Leyritz was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence, running a red light and slamming into another car, causing the death of a 30-year-old woman, according to an

A tire blowout reportedly caused a Sunnyvale woman to lose control of her car that veered off Highway 85 in Cupertino. The accident cost the woman her left arm, according to a news report in the Sunnyvale Sun. The car rolled off a freeway embankment, the article said.

The accident occurred when the woman’s Toyota Celica’s left rear tire blew causing her to lose control of the vehicle. The crash cut the woman’s left arm above the elbow and left her trapped upside down in the car until emergency crews were able to get her out, the newspaper reported. She then had to be airlifted to the local hospital. Officials said that the tire that blew out appeared to be a spare tire.

Defective tires are among the most common causes for drivers to lose control of their vehicles on the freeway. When a tire suddenly blows out or loses its tire tread, the vehicle may go out of control, especially while traveling at freeway speed.
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An innocent motorist and his passenger were killed in a fiery three-car auto accident in Hollywood, which officials say was caused by two people street-racing in BMWs, while one of them, Carlos Steven John of Los Angeles, was driving under the influence of alcohol, according to an article in the Los Angeles Times . Police have arrested Carlos Steven John of Los Angeles and charged him with murder.

The fatal auto accident occurred early morning Saturday at Sunset Blvd. and Highland Ave. when the 21-year-old John, smashed into an Infiniti causing it to burst into flames. The driver of the Infiniti, who has not yet been identified, died on the scene. The passenger in that car who was first announced to be in critical condition with severe burn injuries, later succumbed to those injuries and was pronounced dead the following day. The BMW also struck another car, a Saturn Ion, but the driver of that car escaped with minor injuries, the report said.

The people responsible for this travesty must be held criminally and financially responsible for the death of two innocent men. Clear messages must be sent by our justice system that street racing participants will be held accountable for the losses they cause. What compensation is adequate for the loss of a family member?

Police are seeking the driver of the other racing BMW that sped away. That driver will also face criminal charges and as well as claims by the families of both of the deceased. The fleeing driver can be held just as responsible for this accident as the intoxicated driver.

It seems that we are representing more and more street racing accident victims in the last few years. In the last five years we have made more claims against the non-accident involved racing drivers than in the previous 24 years combined. It also seems that both freeway speeds and surface street speeds are up 5 to 10 mph over five years ago.
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California Highway Patrol Officer Anthony Pedeferri’s life was transformed in a fraction of a second. The 36-year-old veteran motorcycle officer, father of two young girls and a fierce competitor in eight triathlons this year, is now fighting for his life after being struck by a drunk driver on Highway 101 while he was talking to a driver he had just pulled over, according to a news report in the Ventura County Star.

The driver, who was said to be operating his vehicle under the influence, has been charged with felony DUI, vehicular manslaughter, possession of marijuana for sale and transporting marijuana, the newspaper reported. According to the article, the incident occurred when the officer pulled over a small SUV onto the right shoulder. When Pedeferri was talking to the driver of the SUV, White’s large pickup truck, for unexplained reasons, veered off the center lane on to the shoulder and into the back of the SUV.

Pedeferri was knocked out of his boots and thrown 20 yards into the brush on the side of the highway. The impact of the crash also reportedly started a fire and sent the two vehicles spinning into the center lanes. A woman, who had previously worked as a dispatcher in the Ontario Police Department, was a true hero in the incident. She was the one who saw the officer’s boots at the scene, tracked him to the bushes and called the 911 dispatcher so he got immediate help, the newspaper reported.
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The Department of Transportation last week released new statistics, which show that the daily death toll from drunk driving crashes is significantly higher during the holiday season.

Data released by the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration shows that between 2001 and 2005, there were about 36 deaths a day as a result of an alcohol-impaired driver. That number increases to 45 per day during the Christmas holidays and skyrockets to 54 per day during the New Year’s holiday, the report says. It also states that 38 percent of all traffic fatalities during Christmas involved someone driving under the influence and that number went up to 41 percent during New Year’s.

Driving with a blood alcohol level of .08 or higher is illegal in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. This study has kicked of a $7 million nationwide public awareness campaign telling people about the crackdown on drunk drivers during the holiday season by local law enforcement agencies.