Police have pointed to speeding, alcohol and possibly marijuana
as the chief causes behind the near fatal, pre-dawn crash in north
Gilroy last month that smashed parked cars and left two young men
trapped unconscious until firefighters rescued them.
Police have pointed to speeding, alcohol and possibly marijuana as the chief causes behind the near fatal, pre-dawn crash in north Gilroy last month that smashed parked cars and left two young men trapped unconscious until firefighters rescued them.
Based on a felony investigation by the Gilroy Police Department’s Major Accident Investigation Team, the Santa Clara County District Attorney is expected soon to give cops the go-ahead to arrest the unidentified driver of the car in the incident, Sgt. Greg Flippo said. The driver crashed into parked vehicles outside 857 Welburn Ave., near Parish Way – about half way between Kern and Wren avenues – just before 2 a.m. July 31, police said.
Thanks to blood samples taken at the time of wreck, the investigation found the 19-year-old male driver was heavily intoxicated, Flippo said. He also had a suspended license after his arrest six months prior in another county for driving under the influence. Police also found marijuana in the mangled car’s glove box on the night of the accident. The 18-year-old passenger likely will not be arrested, Flippo said. Both young men live in Gilroy.
The accident did not appear to involved street racing or an additional moving vehicle, Flippo said. It occurred west of a slight S-curve in Welburn Avenue, which is wide enough to fit at least six cars from curb to curb. An officer responded within one minute that morning and found the two men trapped inside and unable to respond. The Gilroy Fire Department used extrication tools to remove the two men from the car, police said.
Both men were in “serious condition” at the scene of the accident, and police briefly placed the driver under arrest to collect blood but then released him because suspects in custody who require medical treatment receive such at the expense of the arresting agency, Flippo said. In this case, the driver was a local and unlikely to flee as he suffered “severe head trauma,” so it made little sense to force taxpayers to foot that bill, Flippo said. Instead, both men were out of custody when emergency personnel took them to San Jose Regional Hospital and Valley Medical Center – one by helicopter and the other by an ambulance.
Entering Welburn Avenue from Kern Avenue to the west, the closest posted speed limit sign reads 35 mph. On the east side of the S-curve on Welburn Avenue, the speed limit is 30 mph, just west of Wren Avenue. The bent, gnarled metal stub that used to be a mailbox post outside 857 Welburn Ave. suggested the vehicle came from Kern Avenue and smashed into at least three cars parked on the street.
