Driver Who Crashed Into Law Enforcement Cadets in Los Angeles Claims He Fell Asleep at the Wheel

Two investigators stand next to a mangled SUV that struck Los Angeles County sheriff's recruits in Whittier, Calif., on Nov. 16, 2022. (Jae C. Hong/AP Photo)

The SUV driver who crashed into a group of law enforcement cadets last week in Los Angeles County has denied claims of intentional wrongdoing and said that he fell asleep at the wheel.

“It wasn’t intentional,” Nicholas Joseph Gutierrez, 22, said in an interview with NBC Los Angeles on Monday, adding, “I wish it never happened. I feel bad it happened.”

Gutierrez claims he woke upon recruits banging on his vehicle window. “When I got out I asked if they were OK and they pulled me out, took me to the ground.”

Gutierrez’s Honda CR-V ran into a group of law enforcement cadets on a training run at about 6:30 a.m. Nov. 16 in South Whittier, just blocks from the sheriff’s STARS Explorer Academy law enforcement training center.

There were 75 cadets on the scene. The crash left 25 injured with five in critical condition. One of the cadets, Alejandro Martinez, was reported to be in a “grave condition” and is on life support, sheriff’s officials said Nov. 21.

Gutierrez’s attorney Alexandra Kazarian claimed in a statement to NBC Los Angeles that the crash was not intentional.

“Nicholas comes from a proud law enforcement family and the injuries to these recruits is beyond heartbreaking,“ Kazarian said. ”The Gutierrez family appreciates the Sheriff’s Department taking the time to conduct a full and complete investigation. As many have asked, we want to emphasize that Nicholas was his way to work [sic], and had no drugs or alcohol in his system at the time of this tragic accident.”

Accusation of Murder

Sheriff Alex Villanueva told NewsNation that he believed the crash was a “deliberate act.”

Kazarian told The Los Angeles Times that the sheriff’s assertion was incorrect and there was no evidence suggesting the incident was intentional.

“I have no idea why the sheriff said that,” Kazarian said.

The training class was jogging northbound in four columns on Telegraph Avenue heading toward Mills Avenue when the vehicle approached from the opposite direction, the Orange County Register reported. After hitting the runners, the SUV then slammed into a light pole. According to authorities, the vehicle was estimated to be traveling at about 30 to 40 mph at the time.

Some of the officers running in the front managed to evade the oncoming vehicle, but others following felt the brunt with victims suffering from broken bones, head injuries, and loss of limbs. Most of the injured cadets have been released and returned back to their families.

Gutierrez was arrested for an attempt to murder a peace officer. He was held on $2 million bail but was released before 10 p.m. Thursday for a lack of evidence.