Three people were injured when this SUV crashed into a Fillmore Starbucks. (KTLA-TV) |
FILLMORE, Calif (KTLA) -- Friends and family gathered Sunday to remember a former marine who was killed when an off-duty sheriff's deputy crashed his SUV into a Starbucks in Fillmore.
30-year-old Sergio Mendez was killed Tuesday night when an off-duty deputy veered across lanes, crossed a parking lot and crashed into a Starbucks at the corner of A Street and Highway 126.
Mendez was a Marine who served in Iraq and had enlisted in the National Guard.
Mendez leaves behind a wife and other family members, all torn at the loss of the veteran.
"I was traumatized and shaking and my heart was beating," said Maritza Cruz, one of the first people who tried to save Mendez. She said the driver, identified as 30-year-old Michael Cedarland of Pasadena, appeared "pale" and quiet.
Cedarland, an off-duty L.A. County sheriff's deputy, was heading westbound on Highway 126 in his 2007 Chevy Tahoe when he veered across the eastbound lanes and jumped a curb.
He then crossed the parking lot for about 1000 feet before hitting the east wall of the store, according to the Ventura County Sheriff's Department.
Mendez was pinned between the SUV and the front door frame, authorities said. He was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he died in surgery.
The two other victims -- 25-year-old Jose Iraheta and 73-year-old Thomas Michaels -- were treated and released.
Cedarland, of Pasadena, was on his way to visit a friend when the crash occurred.
He was not arrested, and authorities do not believe he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the crash.
"He did not have any alcohol on his breath," said Capt. Michael Aranda, a spokesman for the Ventura County SheriffÂ’s Department.
Investigators are looking into the possibility that Cedarland lost consciousness or fell asleep.
The Starbucks is now red-tagged, along with a nearby Little Cesar's pizza shop.
30-year-old Sergio Mendez was killed Tuesday night when an off-duty deputy veered across lanes, crossed a parking lot and crashed into a Starbucks at the corner of A Street and Highway 126.
Mendez was a Marine who served in Iraq and had enlisted in the National Guard.
Mendez leaves behind a wife and other family members, all torn at the loss of the veteran.
"I was traumatized and shaking and my heart was beating," said Maritza Cruz, one of the first people who tried to save Mendez. She said the driver, identified as 30-year-old Michael Cedarland of Pasadena, appeared "pale" and quiet.
Cedarland, an off-duty L.A. County sheriff's deputy, was heading westbound on Highway 126 in his 2007 Chevy Tahoe when he veered across the eastbound lanes and jumped a curb.
He then crossed the parking lot for about 1000 feet before hitting the east wall of the store, according to the Ventura County Sheriff's Department.
Mendez was pinned between the SUV and the front door frame, authorities said. He was taken to Ventura County Medical Center, where he died in surgery.
The two other victims -- 25-year-old Jose Iraheta and 73-year-old Thomas Michaels -- were treated and released.
Cedarland, of Pasadena, was on his way to visit a friend when the crash occurred.
He was not arrested, and authorities do not believe he was under the influence of drugs or alcohol at the time of the crash.
"He did not have any alcohol on his breath," said Capt. Michael Aranda, a spokesman for the Ventura County SheriffÂ’s Department.
Investigators are looking into the possibility that Cedarland lost consciousness or fell asleep.
The Starbucks is now red-tagged, along with a nearby Little Cesar's pizza shop.
