Lakewood Man Dies After Brutal Long Beach Crash

LONG BEACH, CA – A 20-year-old Lakewood man involved in a Long Beach crash has died, the Los Angeles County coroner's office reported Thursday. Timothy Johnson, who suffered a fractured hip and pelvis but was freed from his wrecked vehicle by firefighters using heavy equipmentin the crash, was alert and made a statement to officers when he was rescued and brought to a hospital, according to the Long Beach Police Department.

The incident occurred about 12:30 p.m. on Sept. 11 at the intersection of Cherry Avenue and Carson Street in Long Beach. The other driver, 19-year-old Gardena resident Guillermo Fajardo-Soto, who was driving a 2004 Hyundai, was treated at the scene and released, although his vehicle sustained major damage, police said.

The preliminary crash investigation revealed the Hyundai was northbound Cherry Avenue and as it passed Carson Avenue, the Saturn driver made an unsafe right turn, directly in the Hyundai's path, from a parking lot to go north on Cherry, police said.

"The Hyundai was unable to avoid the Saturn and struck the Saturn on the driver's side of the vehicle," according to a police statement.

Johnson was released from the hospital, but apparently suffered medical complications as a result of the crash and was re-hospitalized. He died at a hospital on Sept. 24, according to Long Beach police.

"At this time we are waiting for the coroner's full report for final determination of the cause of death," Long Beach police Sgt. Brad Johnson said.

City News Service and Patch staffer Emily Holland contributed to this post; Image via Shutterstock