Deputy pursuit in Huntington Park ends in crash, leaving 4 hospitalized

Four people were hospitalized after a law enforcement pursuit in Huntington Park ended in a violent crash Tuesday morning, authorities said.

Around 7 a.m., a suspect in a stolen pickup truck fled from sheriff's deputies, leading to a chase that lasted less than a minute before the truck crashed into a sedan at Randolph Street and Boyle Avenue, said Veronica Santom, a spokesperson for the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department.

Both vehicles were significantly damaged. The suspect was taken into custody at the scene, and several people were treated by L.A. County Fire Department officials, with four taken to a hospital with minor injuries, according to Santom.

Car chases are a quintessential Los Angeles phenomenon, with television stations frequently airing them live, most famously in the 1994 low-speed chase involving O.J. Simpson's Ford Bronco.

A 2017 L.A. County grand jury called for revamping the Sheriff's Department's chase policies — as well as those of the Los Angeles Police Department — after Times reporting revealed that 1 in 10 car chases initiated by the Los Angeles Police Department between 2006 and 2014 resulted in injuries to civilians.

The grand jury questioned the need to chase people suspected of nonviolent crimes.

This year, two LAPD pursuits ended in crashes that killed innocent bystanders.

On Jan. 31, a stolen pickup truck fleeing officers crashed into a parked Honda Civic in Panorama City, killing two men inside. LAPD Chief Michel Moore said the department would examine whether the pursuit followed policy.

About two weeks later, on Feb. 16, a 19-year-old Cal State Northridge student was killed when the car he was driving was hit by a vehicle being pursued in connection with a suspected robbery.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.