A 22-year-old man was killed in an illegal street race that wound up on I-15 in Escondido. (Photo: NBC News)
An illegal street race ended in a fatal freeway accident Tuesday on Interstate 15 in Escondido.
• A Nissan 370Z and a Nissan Titan pickup truck raced onto the I-15 freeway from a traffic-signaled intersection on a surface street.
• The 370Z driver lost control of the car, hit a light pole, skidded across the freeway, and crashed into the center divider. He died at the scene.
• The pickup truck driver fled the scene.
• The CHP is urging anyone with information to call 858-637-3800.
The deadly car accident occurred at about 4:40 p.m., according to a report in the North County Times.
California Highway Patrol Officer Jim Bettencourt said 22-year-old Derek Anthony Millsap of Escondido was driving a 2011 Nissan 370Z coupe.
Before the crash, the 370Z was stopped next to a Nissan Titan pickup truck with tinted windows at a stoplight on Via Rancho Parkway. When the light turned green, both vehicles raced onto the southbound I-15 freeway onramp, Bettencourt said.
Just south of the onramp, Milsap lost control of the 370Z and crashed into a metal light pole on the right shoulder of the freeway. The vehicle skidded across all of the southbound traffic lanes and crashed head-on into the center divider in the car pool lane (see photo). The right rear tire hurtled off of the Nissan and hit a silver Toyota Camry.
The Nissan pickup truck which had been racing the Millsap’s 370Z fled the scene. Bettencourt said neither drugs nor alcohol appeared to be a factor in the fatal accident, which appeared to have been caused by illegal street racing.
Millsap was pronounced dead at the scene.
The CHP is urging anyone who saw the accident or has any information about the black Nissan Titan pickup truck to call the California Highway Patrol at 858-637-3800.
Speed Kills
It is difficult to know exactly how many people are killed in illegal street racing because no official statistics are kept. The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) lists all “speeding-related” crashes, including illegal street racing, in a single category.
The NHTSA considers a crash to be speeding-related if the driver was charged with a speed-related offense or if an officer indicated that racing, driving too fast for conditions, or exceeding the posted speed limit was a contributing factor in the crash.
Speeding-related deaths account for more than a third of all motor vehicle accident fatalities in the United States — and the numbers are staggering. According the NHTSA statistics reported by the Census Bureau, 11,674 people were killed in speeding-related crashes in 2011 alone. That’s almost three times the number of Americans who died in combat during the entire Iraq war. In California, 1,141 people died in speeding related crashes last year.
Motor vehicle accidents are still the leading cause of death for people between the ages of 16 and 20.
Escondido Car Accident Lawyers
The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorney Clifford Blackman, have successfully represented car accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.
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