Probe Finds No Fault by Officers in Accident That Killed Boy
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A preliminary Los Angeles Police Department investigation has concluded that two Rampart Division officers were not at fault when their squad car hit and killed a 10-year-old boy in the Westlake district earlier this month.
Lt. Charlie Kunz of the LAPD’s Traffic Coordination Section, which conducted initial investigation, said witness interviews, pavement examination and damage to the vehicle seemed to indicate the officers were traveling within the posted speed limit of 25 m.p.h.
The child, whose name is being withheld pending the outcome of a final investigation, died after he was struck by the patrol car in the 400 block of Occidental Boulevard on July 2, police said.
The officers were responding to a shooting several blocks away under “Code 2” status, which directs them to drive without sirens or flashing lights and obey standard traffic rules, including speed limits.
The accident occurred about 5 p.m. when the boy ran into the street in front of the vehicle. He was attending a friend’s birthday party nearby and had been playing hide-and--seek, police said.
The findings of the preliminary investigation will be forwarded to detectives from the Central Traffic Division.
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