Two hospitalized after wreck involving sheriff’s SUV

JURUPA VALLEY — A Riverside Sheriff’s Sgt. and another driver were both hospitalized after their vehicles smashed into each other at a Jurupa Valley intersection Monday, Feb. 25. The injured official was responding to back up a deputy and was driving with his lights and sirens when the accident happened at Limonite Ave. and Peralta Pl., according to CHP.

Many area residents have claimed the intersection and Limonite in general is exceedingly dangerous and have called for City officials to look into how they can curb the number of accidents that have happened there. One of those accidents last May claimed the lives of a 56-year-old grandmother and her 8-year-old grand-daughter. Other notoriously dangerous intersections along Limonite include Pats Ranch Rd. to the west and Pacific Ave. to the east. Both have been the sites of recent major and fatal accidents. (See other recent Limonite Ave. related crashes below.)

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Emergency personnel were alerted to the crash about 4:15 p.m. Responding fire and rescue crews found a patrol SUV and light-colored Honda Accord that had collided in the intersection. Vehicle parts and debris were scattered throughout the intersection and several lanes of travel were blocked.

Paramedics evaluated and treated the two drivers at the scene before they were both transported by ground ambulances to an area hospital. The Honda driver’s injuries were described as major and the Sgt sustained minor injuries.

Because the crash involved a sheriff’s vehicle, CHP was called in to investigate the cause of the collision, CHP Officer Dan Olivas later explained.

CHP’s preliminary investigation revealed the Sgt. was driving eastbound on Limonite approaching Peralta just before the crash. Because he was responding to a priority call, the Sgt. was driving “Code-3” with his lights and sirens activated, according to Olivas. At the same time, the driver of the Honda was preparing to make a left turn from westbound Limonite onto Peralta.

The patrol SUV entered the intersection just as the driver of the Honda turned left and the two vehicles smashed nearly head-on into each other. The impact sent the patrol vehicle careening into a large, electrical box and the Honda crashed into the center median, according to Olivas.

As news of the violent collision spread on social media, residents began sharing photos and first hand accounts of what the had witnessed; both at the scene of the crash, as well as in the minutes leading to the collision.

Numerous area residents and witnesses reported on various social media sites seeing what appeared to be a vehicle pursuit involving both marked and unmarked patrol vehicles just moments before the crash.

One area resident, Jimmy Ulloa, who works in Rubidoux, said he witnessed what he believed was a “sheriff and gang unit chasing someone in a car.” He described seeing the pursuit “speeding up Limonite.”

Another witness, Sue Pan, said she was at Stater Bros on Limonite when she saw “a couple of sheriffs” suddenly jump into their patrol vehicles and speed out of the parking lot. “They were going really fast,” Pan described.

SEE OTHER LIMONITE RELATED CRASHES:

UPDATE: Second victim dies after suspected DUI wreck in JV kills grandmother, 56, granddaughter, 8

UPDATE: DUI suspect who left 14-year-old girl behind after fleeing major-injury JV wreck arrested

UPDATED: JURUPA VALLEY: Riverside man killed after car rolled multiple times ID’d

UPDATE: Riverside victim ID’d after deadly JV crash

DUI suspected after fiery Jurupa Valley wreck

Neither CHP or Riverside Sheriff’s officials have confirmed whether or not a pursuit was directly or indirectly related to, or preceded, the crash. A request for additional details regarding the possible pursuit had not been responded to as of this report.

While CHP investigated the collision, they called for the temporary closure of westbound Ave Juan Bautista to Peralta and eastbound from Camino Real to Ave Juan Bautista. The roadway was reopened several hours later.

Alcohol and/or drug intoxication are not suspected to be contributing factors in the collision, according to Olivas, who said CHP’s investigation is active and ongoing.

This is a developing story that will be updated as new information is available.

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Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 47, moved last year to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source and Shasta County News Source. Additionally, he writes for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers, Valley News, The Valley Chronicle, and Anza Valley Outlook; as well as Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County and Mountain Echo in Shasta County.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 28 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 15 – but soon to be 16 – grandchildren.