A crash involving a police cruiser and a pickup truck has left a 32-year-old officer dead, according to authorities. The cause of the accident appears to be the driver of the pickup truck, who had turned in front of the cruiser, violating his right of way. Unfortunately, the officer was unable to stop in time and crashed into the truck, which caused the cruiser to collide into a tree in a Willoughby, Ohio, resident's front yard.
The car ended up torn apart and the officer died at the scene. When paramedics arrived he was not breathing and unresponsive. Immediately following the crash, the resident in whose yard he crashed came to his aid. She tried to talk to him and care for him, but he was unable to communicate.
According to the Willoughby police chief, the officer had been a full-time officer with the Cleveland Clinic Police Department since 2006 and had worked as a half-time officer with the Willoughby department since 2003. He had also been named the Willoughby Special Officer of the Year in 2009.
The officer had been responding to backup requests from another officer at the time of the crash. The police chief said the man was the first to perish while on duty in more than 50 years.
This horrific accident was all due to one driver's apparent inability to yield the right of way. Had the pickup driver waited one or two minutes longer, this accident would never have happened. Sadly, not everyone has the foresight to prevent an accident and, when these accidents do happen, there are legal options available to the innocent victims and their families.
Source: NBC 4, "Ohio Police Officer Killed In Collision With Truck," Sept. 23, 2012
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