Lawyer: Driver in Sheriff’s Academy Crash Fell Asleep

Lawyer: Driver in Sheriff’s Academy Crash Fell Asleep
Law enforcement personnel take a closer look at the destruction of an SUV involved in critically injuring nearly two dozen deputy recruits in a Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department training academy class in Whittier, Calif., on Nov. 16, 2022. Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images
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LOS ANGELES—The driver of an SUV that crashed into Los Angeles County law enforcement recruits on a training run last week fell asleep at the wheel while driving to work, his attorney told a newspaper Monday.

Attorney Alexandra Kazarian told the Los Angeles Times that Nicholas Gutierrez was on his way to his job as an electrical engineer at a solar panel company when he fell asleep. He had awoken at 5 a.m. but had not been up late the night before, she said. Authorities have said the crash happened at around 6:30 a.m.