The woman who was hit by a car that was rear-ended by a police cruiser during a dramatic pursuit in the South Bay is suffering from several broken ribs and bruising, her family said.
Maria Salazar, 66, was walking in a crosswalk Thursday around 1 p.m. in Harbor City with grocery bags in hand when a speeding, stolen Toyota Prius zipped to the area.
Following closely behind, police cruisers were in pursuit of the vehicle when it slowed down near Vermont Avenue and Sepulveda Boulevard. While appearing to come to a stop, the Prius was rear-ended by a police cruiser, causing the vehicle to spin in the intersection and then strike Salazar on the crosswalk.
“I was crossing the street, and I don’t remember anything,” Salazar told Telemundo52. “I just felt the impact.”
Salazar refused medical treatment at the scene and walked roughly a mile to get home. According to her family, she eventually went to Harbor-UCLA Medical Center on her own and spent the night at the facility. She suffered five broken ribs, swollen lungs and several cuts and bruises to her face.
“She’s not doing well,” Lilia Salazar, Maria’s sister-in-law, said. “The impact she received – it was really hard.”
According to Maria’s loved ones, she’s struggling to breathe as she tries to recover from her injuries. Meanwhile, her relatives are continuing to try to wrap their heads around what happened.
“I don’t know why they were chasing him,” Diana Salazar said. “The urgency of stopping him. I don’t know if they saw my mom.”
Lilia said she is hoping the Torrance Police Department will be held accountable for their role in the crash.
“It is the police’s fault,” Lilia said. “I don’t know if it was he or she that decides to hit the car, so it’s their fault.”
Torrance police said it can’t force aid on a person unless they have seemingly life-threatening injuries, which is why officers let Maria go at the scene without treating her. The department added that officers went to Salazar’s home after the crash but by then, she was already at the hospital.
The department is conducting an investigation on the carjackings that led to the pursuits as well as an internal investigation looking into the actions of the officers that caused the crash.
Maria’s family said they are considering hiring an attorney to potentially take legal action against the Torrance Police Department.
Source: NBC Los Angeles