Update 2: Apparently Bruce was smoking, not texting.
Update: CNN has more details on the crash, which was a multi-car pile up. A representative from the LA County Sheriff’s Department has said that there is “no indication at this time that [paparazzi were] a contributing factor of the crash.” It’s known that paparazzi were there, however, as TMZ has photos of the moment of impact. Whats more is that police will get a search warrant to determine if Bruce was texting at the time of the crash. Here’s more, from CNN:
Jenner was driving a black Cadillac SUV on Saturday that was the third vehicle involved in a multiple read-end collision, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Sgt. Philip Brooks said.
The first vehicle was a black Toyota Prius, CNN affiliate KCAL reported, citing deputies. Behind it was a white Lexus sedan that also hit its brakes.
Jenner’s Escalade was towing a trailer with an all-terrain vehicle on it when it ran into the Lexus from behind, Brooks said. The Lexus spun into oncoming traffic and was hit by a Hummer H2. The driver of the Lexus was killed.
No information about the deceased was immediately available. Jenner, 65, was not injured in the crash, publicist Alan Nierob said.
A vehicular manslaughter investigation has been opened, but it is not solely focused on Bruce.
Yesterday, while on the Pacific Coast Highway, Bruce Jenner rear-ended a mid size Lexus sedan that was either slowing to stop at a red light or had slowed down unexpectedly, reports vary. Bruce was driving a Cadillac Escalade and hauling an ATV behind it. According to law enforcement, The ATV may have contributed to the crash by making it harder for Bruce to stop in time. After Bruce hit the sedan, it was pushed out into oncoming traffic and was hit again, killing the driver, an elderly woman. Another passenger in the sedan seemed unharmed. There were other injuries sustained among the people in the vehicle, a Hummer, that hit the sedan a second time. Bruce was reportedly being chased by five paparazzi at the time, although it is unclear if that contributed to the crash, and was sober. He passed a field sobriety test and volunteered to have blood taken at a hospital. TMZ has more on this sad situation along with photos of the accident in progress. I’m quoting the NY Post here because they have a clearer timeline and direct quotes from law enforcement:
Bruce Jenner rear-ended a car Saturday, causing an accident that killed a woman motorist.
Seven other people were injured in the accident, which happened shortly after noon on the Pacific Coast Highway near its intersection with Corral Canyon Road.Jenner’s dark blue Cadillac Escalade was towing a dune buggy in a trailer when he rear-ended a white Lexus sedan being driven by an elderly woman.
The Lexus spun into oncoming traffic and smashed head-on into a black Hummer. The impact of the horrifying collision killed the woman, sources said.
Officers are investigating why the Lexus stopped or slowed in front of Jenner. They said its driver may have slowed because of the traffic signal at the nearby intersection.
Five paparazzi were following Jenner’s car. Sheriff’s officers denied reports that the photographers were chasing Jenner, and said the former Olympic gold medalist had been taking no evasive action to avoid them…
Jenner, 65, did not appear injured. “He was up walking around, and he returned to his car once he realized the severity of the accident,” Picerno told The Post.
Jenner lives about two miles from the scene. Another witness said Jenner texted his son, Brody, who showed up with his girlfriend as cops questioned his father.
The Olympic gold medalist passed a field sobriety test that required him to walk a straight line and touch his nose. He also submitted a blood sample.
“He did not appear intoxicated or under the influence of anything,” said Sgt. Philip Brooks of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department.
The survivors’ injuries ranged from slight to moderate, sources said. A rescue helicopter took one victim to a hospital.
Three children were passengers in the Hummer, including one who is a month old. They were treated at the scene for minor injuries.
Jenner’s trailor may have been a factor. “You have think all that weight from the [Jenner] SUV and the trailer — it’s going to give quite a push when it hits from the rear,” Brooks said.
“The paparazzi were following him but we have no indication he was being chased. Being a celebrity, he is used to that,” the sergeant said.
There’s more in the Post, including some sad details I didn’t want to repeat. Our thoughts go out to the victim’s family. If more information comes out, we will update this story.
Photos courtesy of PCN and Fame/Flynet.
Very sad for everyone involved.
Very sad. The pictures of this woman just split seconds before she does. This is tragic.
I know they’re sensational, but I might have actually had an ounce of respect for Levin if he had chosen not to publicize them. It’s like they have the attitude that they’re spotlighting Bruce, while ignoring that the woman as a victim. Terrible.
Those photos should be pulled in respect to the woman’s family.
+1000
This is just sad beyond words. I feel so badly for the woman that lost her life and her family and friends. Also, for Bruce who will live with this tragedy for the rest of his life. It’s just beyond comprehension.Sad all around.
Yes, agree with everything you said. I have a friend who accidentally hit a man (he was intoxicated) who walked out in front of her car, and he died as a result. It has been awful for his family, of course, and for her as well. I feel for everyone in this situation.
I forgot to mention the father and children in the Hummer. They will live with this too, but thankfully they all survived, including the fragile infant.
You 2 are saying it all. It’s really just sad and all involved will have to live with this.
I’m my work I’ve seen those involved in crashes with a life lost. It hits them very hard. The guilt weighs even though there was no intent or wrongdoing on their part. It can really destroy people.
That stretch of road is so dangerous and fast. And you have to go fast to stay with the flow of traffic or slowing down to be the factor that causes an accident. IMO anyway.
Sad stuff.
This is really sad. My heart hurts for everyone involved. TMZ has pictures of the moment of impact (sickening) and it does look like Bruce might have been texting or looking at his phone. I really hope he wasn’t.
I think he was just holding his hand up in a reaction to waiting for the impact.
You could be right, i didn’t think of that possibility. In my opinion, it almost looks as if he were smoking in the picture..
His window is cracked, and he is a known smoker. Don’t people who drive and smoke usually use their left hand so they can flick the ashes out of the window? (In the US) And if he were right handed i don’t know that it would be easy to text with his left hand.
Just my observations. I felt compelled to mention this since I didn’t see anyone else throw that theory out there.
I learned a terrible lesson about smoking and driving when I was 19 years old. I was going over a causeway over the intercoastal waterway in Florida. A guy passing by in the next lane chucked his cigarette out his window and it came in through my window and landed between my legs on my cloth seats. I was in such a panic that I fire was going to start or my pants were going to catch fire that I lost control of my vehicle and drove up the side of the bridge barrier – nearly going off and plunging to my death. Luckily, I regained control and that didn’t happen. But I never forgot that and to this day, I get heart palpitations every time I see someone flick a cigarette out of their car window.
@LaurieH
OMG. That is a nightmare. I am glad ÿou recovered.
PCH is a dangerous place. It is both a “main street” for the Malibu community and a highway that has a 50 mph speed limit. Surfers, tourists and valets run across the highway randomly. People tend to tailgate way too closely for such high speeds. If you think a car is going through a yellow, but they are actually going to stop for the red light, this kind of thing happens.
I don’t know what happened here, but I wish people would give more of a buffer room when following others to account for the speed and all of the hazards.
It’s crazy that they don’t have speed reduction at the point where there is heavy pedestrian traffic.
Oh wow! That’s insane. I loath cigarettes and this just added one more reason.
Before the police even arrived the Kardashian PR machine put out the word that 5 paps were chasing him. The police said the paps were present but they had NO involvement in the crash. These Kardashians pimp and bait the paps and then when something goes wrong, they blame the paps. How did the paps even know Bruce was on the Pacific Coast Highway? They knew where he was because they were told he’d be there.
This is very sad and I’m sure it was just a needless accident where Bruce wasn’t paying attention. However, if he was texting while he was driving, there’s going to be real trouble.
RIP innocent lady.
CNN reported that authorities said paps were NOT chasing him..
Where’d the pictures come from?
Original Tessa, good question. Seems unlikely that a random photographer just happened to be nearby and was able to get such detailed photos.
i know, right?
how is it that there are pics of the exact moment of impact taken from somewhere directly across the street?
how is that?
The paparazzi have pictures of the accident happening. They weren’t waiting until he got where he was going. They have a habit of chasing.
following him doesn’t mean they were chasing him.
Most times with this family they call the paps so they know they are following them.
I’ve seen reports about paparazzi following celebrities in their vehicles and radioing to each other or calling/texting where they are at. It’s not out of the question that they were following Bruce just hoping to get photos of him and then the accident happened. It doesn’t mean that they were “chasing” him and caused it. But being paparazzi they aren’t about to let that opportunity go by to take photos of it all. I hope the police took all of the images to use in the vehicular manslaughter investigation. This is just sad and tragic all the way around.
How would they even chase on that road? Seriously.
And, quite frankly, why would they need to? And if they’re “chasing” him, why are they driving the opposite direction on the other side of the road. More than likely, some of those photos are from a non-pap who gave them to the outlets.
TMZ was… they have photos of the moment of impact.
Malibu is covered by the Los Angeles Sheriffs Dept, the Lost Hills division, or otherwise known to all of us who live here…the “Sheriffs-to-the-Stars”. These are the same ones who fired their own employee for telling the truth about Mel Gibson (when they were covering up for him), regularly let celebs go without a ticket, no matter what insane thing they are doing, but after arresting one woman, they let her go in the middle of the night without any money or any way home and she disappeared. When a families 24 yr old son disappeared in that area on his way to his girlfriends house, the Sheriffs-to-the-Stars couldn’t be bothered, and waited 3 agonizing days and nights before they would even discuss looking for him. And they were really snotty about it. So the family got together their own search party (we were part) and hired their own search and rescue. They found their son, on the third night, dead in his car, down the bottom of a ravine on Mulholland Hwy. Meanwhile the news still says he was found by the cops. Oh, and although the sheriffs wouldn’t help, or allow Search and Rescue to go out with their helicopter, they did issue petty tickets to members of the search party.
So, I’m sure Bruce has nothing to fear, even though it sounds like his driving was the responsible factor. I see the Kartrash out and about almost every day and they are almost always followed by papz. The Kartrash pull into a store or Coffee house, regularly park illegally, go in about their business, cut in front of the line, and then expect items for free or at a discount. Meanwhile the papz, who also park illegally and often dangerously, follow the ktrash inside, jostling and pushing the regular patrons around to get their shots and in general getting in everyones hair. Meanwhile, the kartrash pretend they don’t see them and snottily walk past everyone else like they are bloody royalty. They have literally ruined Calabasas or should I say, Kalabasas. A lot of my friends have moved, and we are looking at other counties ourselves. Hope to move this year.
My final comment…I think it is a shame this poor woman had to die because she was rammed in the back by a giant escalade and in front by a hummer. Unless you own a ranch or have a similar business need, why do people have to drive the biggest freaking car they can afford? Its so insensitive, anti-environment, anti-safety. I think huge vehicles should be taxed un the yingyang, unless they have a business reason for needing it. And yes, I know Bruce was pulling some little thing. My sister and her husband pull their adorable small camping trailer behind their 6 cylinder Rav4. You don’t need a giant vehicle to pull something small. Every day I see giant hummers and suvs with one person in them, taking up two parking spaces, stopping within a hairsbreadth of the car in front of them. They are usually aggressive drivers.
I should add that I also see many, many other famous people, often A list, going about their business with no photography entourage following, do their shopping with no fanfare or rudeness, stand in line and pay for their goods like everyone else. These reality people, most of them, are over-the-top arrogant and always expecting special treatment. They make regular movie stars look like “just plain folks” by comparison. I hate reality tv with a passion, and think it is a terrible thing for American culture.
I’m not sure how I feel about this whole thing. Bruce valued his privacy to such a degree that he killed someone trying to flee the paparazzi. Yet he’s in the process of filming a reality show about his sex reassignment. I don’t know why this guy gets so much sympathy while Kris is vilified. They are two peas in a pod.
Regarding these ginormous vehicles – WORD. I have a tiny Honda Civic because it’s environmentally responsible, and because I don’t feel the need to drive an armored vehicle best used in war. I was in a fender bender the other day. The other car was an SUV. Her car – unharmed except her license plate. My car – entire hood crumpled, and grill crushed. I shouldn’t have to drive a tank to make sure I’m not killed by these enormous vehicles.
I am no fan of any Kardashian by blood or marriage, but it’s not right to assume he was fleeing from the paps or was the cause of this accident.
My prayers go out to the deceased woman.
Unfortunately accidents do happen but I will wait till there are more facts before making up my mind.
It doesn’t matter why the Lexus was slowing down; Jenner is at fault.
He was following too closely.
I hope that the officers are as interested in Jenner’s phone log at the time of impact and immediately prior.
My condolences to the family of the dead woman and I hope the other victims heal quickly.
That’s so unkind. Yes, he was probably technically at fault, but tragic accidents happen. I rear ended someone once because he stopped suddenly just as another car nearly sideswiped my car and I looked away for two seconds. I was fortunate that no one was hurt. It was ruled no fault by the insurance company. Accidents happen, and I’m sure Bruce is shattered by this incident. He wasn’t necessarily doing something wrong.
You are describing a situation where your car impacted another as a result of that car avoiding a collision.
In other words, you would have been one of the other vehicles involved in the Jenner crash, having been pushed into others or into oncoming traffic and impacting another vehicle trying to avoid this.
Why are you sure Bruce is shattered by this incident? Because you or I would be?
We will see; they need to check his phone records.
I’m just assuming he’s shattered by the incident as you or I would be, that’s true, but I think anyone would be, don’t you?
You have a point, of course, and maybe he was doing something wrong. I just want to give him the benefit of the doubt unless it’s shown that he was. I just feel really bad for everyone involved.
The total weight of his vehicle plus the tow is what should have made him more cautious, although it was an accident, there was no intent to harm anyone. But you see this kind of thing play out with semis on highways, where they travel very close behind cars, like they are in a sports vehicle. They are not going to be able to stop on a dime.
You have to memorise safe stopping distances to pass your driving theory test here in the UK. The motorways often have painted chevrons to show safe distance to the car in front. Despite all this, and despite it being common knowledge that safe distance may make you the guilty party in an accident in insurance (and possibly criminal) terms, EVERYONE drives too close ALL the time.
I agree, I don’t think we should burn him at the stake quite so fast. Accidents happen. He wasn’t drunk or high.
If he was following too close, using his phone or not paying attention then it absolutely IS his fault. If a human being lost her life because of something he did or did not do then he should stew in the guilt of that, fangirls be damned.
I should add that I lost one of my best friends in a collision (I refuse to call it an accident) caused by some vapid woman who decided to “glance at her phone” while driving. So yeah, it gets my goat to hear people bending over backwards to push an accident theory even before the investigations are done. Insensitive and inconsiderate.
Leona, I’m so sorry about your friend. But I think you have it backwards. I’m not “pushing” an accident theory. And I’m not a “fan girl,” but thank you for telling me to be damned. I agree that people who text and drive should have their DL taken away. There’s no excuse for that. And if he was, he should go to jail. But there is absolutely no evidence so far that he was doing any such thing, or breaking any law. I think you’re the one who’s being unfair.
Based on what I know from this highway, I think the photos suggest he WAS following too closely for a 50 mph highway, but don’t have enough info to know that conclusively. When you are going high speeds and have more weight to your vehicle, you need to allow more room to slow down.
As I mentioned above, PCH is a very dangerous place to drive. It is a highway and has a high speed limit, but it also the main street of malibu, and pedestrians are always running across it. People like to go fast and tailgate like they are on the freeway.
Thank you thank you thank you. I so cosign this comment.
The more that’s coming out, Bruce’s car was third in the pileup. The white car rear ended a Prius that was stopped 30 feet shy of the stop light. Why the Prius stopped suddenly before the stop light is where this investigation seems to be heading. Yes Bruce rear ended the white car and the woman got bumped into oncoming traffic, but we don’t know the whole story.
The person who rear-ended is almost always ‘at fault’ legally. Although, there seems to be some caveats:
http://www.attorneys.com/auto-accidents/who-is-liable-in-a-rear-end-collision/
Yeah, I know that, Kiddo. Thanks.
I didn’t mean to be a jerk, if you took it that way. 🙂
No, I was more wondering if the white Lexus was the first to rear end. Because if her brake lights aren’t on, and she’s accelerating, Bruce doesn’t see the Prius necessarily, and he’s helpless to stop at a certain point if the Lexus’s brake lights never go off. Your brain sees the lights, and your foot hits the brake. if The Lexus never applied the brakes, this whole thing shouldn’t fall on Bruce. The Lexus, RIP, may have played a role in this accident.
This is vehicular manslaughter as it’s playing out right now. Bruce could be sent to jail.
That’s what I’ve always understood, and told my kids–you have to keep a safe distance, because even if the person ahead of you stop suddenly, you will be blamed for rear ending. I guess we will see.
@springforward, none of us know what really happened in this accident. It would be awful for this accident to happen, someone to die, and have pictures all over the world on the media of it. Bruce will have to live with this for the rest of his life. It must be really painful. Wait until it’s know how this happened before being so mean
It’s worse for the woman’s family.
What Kiddo said.
I think the fact that it’s worse for the woman’s family goes without saying. That doesn’t mean you can’t have compassion for him as well as for the woman’s family. It’s not a contest. There’s plenty of grief to go around.
GNAT, I didn’t think it a contest, but rather from the perspective of a loved one where every second of a sudden tragic death/loss is immortalized.
Yes, it’s worse for them, of course.
It’s bad for everyone involved.
100%
It’s unfortunate but true that these kinds of accidents happen all the time. Now that I no longer work for a legal prosecution office I don’t have to see the photos and details of vehicular manslaughter cases anymore. This situation is terribly sad. I know they will do a thorough investigation up to and including the distance of Bruce’s vehicle behind the Lexus.
Actually, it sounds like the issue was a Prius that stopped at the stoplight but way far back from the stoplight. On CNN they were saying that the Lexus would have struck the Prius regardless, but the combo of being hit from behind and hitting the Prius pushed the car into oncoming traffic. Very sad situation for all involved. NOTE TO CELEBITCHY – can you find a different photo of Bruce to use? You use that all the time. It’s not funny like the Baby Bieber photos. It just seems mean.
This is why I HATE SUVs and trucks as a car driver. Is it law in CA that you are supposed to leave at the least a car-length in between? I would think you should leave even more space while hauling something behind your vehicle. Speed, Velocity plus weight, acceleration, etc. There are photos of the whole thing on the DM; not going to link it. I think the paps being present doesn’t justify recklessness.
This is so sad, I don’t know how I could live with killing someone. I don’t even want to imagine it. That poor woman’s family.
Two second rule, I believe? I might be misremembering that tho. In either case, yes when you’re hauling you absolutely must take into account slower stopping speed. If he was tailgating & texting…ugh. I swear, drivers in Cali are 2nd only to the crazies in Arizona, where a red light is “just a suggestion”.
I’m from California, and I was always taught that you’re suppose to leave 3s, not 2s.
You’re right, I just googled and it’s 3 seconds.
Here it is the 2 second rule as well.
Agreed Kiddo. Well stated post.
The 2 second rule is in BC also, 4 seconds in winter
Especially in this area! People who live in this area know that it is a magnet for pedestrians and foodies. Malibu Seafood is right in this area. Surfers love the beaches to the west. People are constantly running back and forth across this highway in this area, getting food one one side and eating it at the beach on the other, doing u-turns, looking for parking, etc. It is one of those areas where you drive more cautiously because you know at any time a fool in a wetsuit could come running barefoot across the highway right in front of you.
From the details, it sounds like Bruce and the driver of the Lexus could have allowed for more space in front of their vehicles.
@Kiddo, Absolutely! I posted up thread about a fender bender that severely damaged my little Civic while the SUV was undamaged. It really outrages me. In the hospital parking lot where I worked, I was constantly getting scrapes and scratches on the front of my car from SUVs tapping against my car. I started parking backwards, and the SUV drivers made sure to mark up the back of my car. There is a common arrogance I note in people who drive these enormous vehicles. They know they are less likely to be injured in an accident. Also, they always pull too forward and block the view of smaller cars. I frequently have to edge up into an intersection to see the highway. Meanwhile, the gigantic SUV driver is too busy yacking on the phone to notice my dirty look.
And I agree that the paps mean nothing. Bruce values his privacy so much that he’s filming a reality show about his journey.
I feel so bad for everyone involved, what a tragic accident. I really hope he wasn’t texting, from what I’m gathering it seems like the prius may have started it by stopping in the middle of the road.
These celebrities love to blame the paps, but ultimately it is their decision to do stupid things while driving: speeding, texting, not wearing a safety belt, drinking, even calling the paps…the list goes on. I feel sorry for the innocent woman who died and the other victims involved who sustained injuries and had their vehicles damaged.
I’m very sorry for the woman who died. No one should have to lose their life over the idiocy that is paparazi hunting down some celebrity to ask what they had for lunch.
That being said the fact this is The Kardashian’s has put a bad taste in my mouth, as others have said they usually call the paparazi and invite ther presence. Now someone has died…
I feel bad for the drivers and passengers involved, serious accidents are terrifying.
Gender-bender? Shame on Page Six. I’d expect that from Radar.
I sincerely doubt this is Kardashian PR machine regarding the paps following him. If he texted Brody, Brody hates Kris.
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-bruce-jenner-involved-in-fatal-accident-in-malibu-20150207-story.html
Other websites are reporting this as a chain reaction crash. White Lexus hit stopped Prius first. Sounds like the Prius was stopped to make an illegal u turn.
Weird. I haven’t seen a single photo that shows any of those other cars. Just Jenner’s, the Lexus, and the Hummer that hit her.
Unfortunately, there were four cars involved which caused a chain reaction. A white Prius was stopped, the white Lexus hit the Prius from the rear, then Bruce’s Escalade rear-ended the Lexus, sending it into oncoming traffic and it was hit by the Hummer. There is still some question as to why the Prius was stopped, as it was still a fair distance from the red light. I think it’s going to be a while before we have an explanation as to the cause of all the drivers’ decisions and actions. Regardless, I’m sure Bruce and the drivers of the Prius and the Hummer are all devastated. My thoughts endlessly return to the woman who passed. It was such a violent end for her, may she rest in peace.
It’s terrifying the damage that large vehicles can do to smaller cars. Jenner should have been required to have specialized training before hauling an ATV. The Hummer didn’t do anything wrong except for driving a Hummer on city streets. A Honda Civic wouldn’t have caused as much damage. I’m going to get slammed for saying these things but oversized vehicles are a consistent threat to those of us driving responsibly sized cars.
Agreed. They have a bigger responsibility since they carry a higher risk of causing fatalities.
Agreed. So scary and a sad situation.
Hear, hear!
I totally agree, Bettyrose and Kiddo. I think the height of SUV bumpers is also very dangerous to cars. If I hit your car in my car, our bumpers will take most of the impact. When I rear-ended an SUV with my car, as I described above, it did no damage to the SUV, but his bumper went straight into the grill of my car and did $5000 worth of damage. I was only going about 5 miles an hour in heavy traffic. It could have easily killed me had I been going faster.
Glad you’re safe, GutenRamen. Somebody just backed into my brand new Subaru Crosstrek with their FJ Cruiser and completely crumpled it. I watched it happen and actually laughed because it was like demo derby slo-mo. Conversely, I have a jacked up Landcruiser that I use for work on my property, and I totally ran over a rental car in my own driveway when I forgot it was there. Moral of the story: big SUV stays home and detroys cars, little car goes to town and gets destroyed. I’m trading them both in and getting a Pegasus.
Thanks, mimif. I don’t have anything against SUV drivers – I just think the safety laws need to be revisited now that so many people drive them. Btw, I backed into my husband’s car once because I forgot it was there. So I get it. Embarrassing.
I just posted something similar above. I do have something against SUV drivers. My little Civic has been injured many times by gigantic SUVs. I find SUV drivers are a little more careless because there’s an arrogance that accompanies the safety of driving a tank. Add to that fact that I almost always see SUV drivers yacking on their cell phones, and drivers of small sensible cars (like me) have to be on the defensive.
Thank you Bettyrose – some years ago I watched from my house as a huge SUV backed out of a driveway next door and backed into my small sedan which was parked on the other side of the street. The guy took off but I got a partial license plate and description of the vehicle so he got caught. Apparently he totally “didn’t see my car” as he backed out… /:-[
Jeez. He didn’t see it maybe but I’m sure he heard/felt it. Glad you caught the guy.
Many times when I have been walking through the Gelsons parking lot (upscale grocery store in socal), I have had to leap for it, to keep from getting hit by a Hummer. The truth is, they have terrible blind spots. I’ve heard of parents trying to get Hummers banned from driving into school parking lots, because they have often almost hit kids they can’t see. Horrible vehicles.
I was thinking the same thing when I saw the pictures of the crash scene: if the Lexus had been hit by anything smaller than a Hummer SUV she probably would have survived. Small cars can not win in a crash with bigger cars. And while it’s neither here nor there I wonder if the Lexus driver had her seat belt on although I’m certainly not blaming her for her own death even if she wasn’t wearing it.
I’d bet dollars to donuts she was wearing her seatbelt. I’ll never understand why people drive Hummers. Escalades are ridiculous too, but at least you can put a small congregation in them.
a hummer is a ridiculous vehicle for non military use
as they said on snl when they were discontinued “now people will have to go door to door to let them know they are a * * holes”
I’m guessing she was not wearing her seatbelt. Based on the pictures, although the front end of the car was demolished, the cabin appears to be intact. It looks like the passenger side door was able to opened regularly (instead of pried open due to damage). My first thought at seeing that image was that in a car built for safety like Lexus, the driver should have survived. Then, her cause of death was listed as “blunt chest trauma.” To me, that means she was not wearing a seat belt and she died from injuries as a result of her impact with the steering wheel and column. Also, if it is true that she did not have a valid license since 2007, that makes me wonder even more if she was the cautious type, or the type who was overly-concerned with obeying the law. Of course, that is just my guess. I hope for her family’s sake she was wearing a seat belt so they never have to wonder “what if?”
Well said Bettyrose. I commented similarly upthread.
some of the comments on tmz are disgusting. saying bruce didn’t look upset enough, etc, saying he’s gonna get off OJ. there was even a comment that said they wished he had died. sometimes accidents happen, let the police do their investigation.
there was a real sad accident in my town on christmas eve. a doctor was in an accident with his family, his 12 yr old daughter was killed and he was paralyzed from the neck down. I met a doctor who worked with him and his family and you could tell how hard it was for him, knowing the family
“some of the comments on tmz are disgusting.” It must be a banner day because usually ALL of the comments on TMZ are disgusting.
I think *most* of the comments across the popular internet are revolting, barring a few select sites. I was looking at Bobbi Kristina’s insta yesterday and…man, my heart hurt reading some of the truly awful comments people were posting.
Agreed. Long ago, I decided “I’m not talking to you” anymore in most comment sections.
I see what you did there. 🙅
Too true. This is pretty much the only site where I read comments. Occasionally we have thoughtless comments, but not the repulsiveness that occurs at TMZ and elsewhere. Here the comments are key to the post, either furthering the conversation or providing comic relief.
This is a tragic accident, regardless of fault, and I feel for all involved. I think everyone has been involved in some type of accident (maybe not vehicular or this bad, but we’ve all made or been impacted by an accident).
TMZ is full of gross trolls. Horrible instagram and facebook comments confuse me though, because it goes back to an actual account, usually attached to an actual person! Kudos to celebitchy for trying to keep out the trolls.
@ Kiddo, LOLOL!
Horrible. He didn’t look upset enough? I’m sure he was in shock, not every flies into hysterics when stuff like this happens. People can be so vile.
And that accident in your town sounds so sad. My mom always used to say that car accidents tend to occur in close proximity to people’s homes, seems to be true in both cases.
People can be really cold. Most likely he was shocked. I know I would be. He’s a great guy who has been in the media too much because of his private life lately. I couldn’t imagine imagine being in an accident like that.
When someone says they wish he had died, I wonder what kind of person would say that. This is definitely not the first time TMZ had disgusting comments
The comments at People.com are vile as well blaming his transitioning, hormones, wondering will he go to men’s or women’s prison.Disgusting.If this had happened two years ago I have no doubt the comments would not be as hateful.The hatred of transgender people is mind boggling.I am seeing everywhere even gay blogs.
Sad
I know celebs get this but I can tell the tone and intensity of these comments are related to Bruce’s appearance now.Regarding paparazzi I see little difference between being followed and being in a low speed chase.I witnessed a celebrity being chased or followed by several paps on the 101.Everytime the celeb changed lanes ,two paps would get behind him or her.One got in the front, one on the side.I never found out who the celebrity was.This was in 2012.I was a nervous wreck.
Prayers to all the families involved
Totally agree. People’s comment section is awful, and I agree about the hate for transgender people online.
How horrible. What a sad, tragic accident for all involved.
This is so upsetting. The only thing that could possibly bring me comfort is if we find out the elderly lady that died was a cruel person that did horrible things in her life and never had an inch of compassion for anyone. Chances are though, she was a lovely spirit, and a good one, that didn’t deserve to die in this manner. My heart goes out to all involved, especially her family.
I have an added sense of compassion for Bruce because this is easily the most sensitive time he’s had to spend in the public eye. I fear this will color people support for the transition he’s in the process of making. He has a platform that may teach others to have a healthier acceptance of gender differences. That’s a beautiful thing. There’s NEVER a good time for an accident of this nature but this will make his life that much more complicated.
So sad on so many levels.
I feel terrible for all those who were injured, and for the family of the woman who died. It has to be especially difficult knowing that the photos are all over the place, and the media will focus on Jenner, the only one involved who wasn’t injured.
Following too closely is a problem everywhere, I think.
I know here cars weave in and out of traffic, which of course greatly impacts the safe stopping distance I maintain. It’s just not as easy as the rule books make it to be, because others just don’t seem to care.
Where I live, every car involved would be charged in some manner, because as drivers, we are expected to be in care and control of our vehicles at all times- regardless of what others do. We also have no fault which just plain sucks, because sometimes someone IS at fault. Insurance rates increase regardless, with no recourse for compensation in a civil suit. My husband was rear ended, he was stopped at a red light and the car behind him just… did not stop. Crash. New car, and we sucked up the monthly payments, when the previous car was paid for.
I hope they all get charged, accident or not. Accidents change lives too, regardless of intent.
This is so true. I know VERY few people who truly keep a safe distance when driving. So I can’t help but think “there but for the grace of god go I”
I’m betting MOST of us could have been involved in this accident.
I don’t think it’s such a stretch to think he was texting or looking at his phone. They’ll pull records to see if he was anyway. He was definitely following too closely for safety if he couldn’t stop without rear ending her and pushing her into oncoming traffic.
How horrific. I feel horrible for the woman’s family, and the family in the Hummer.
This is so sad. My condolences to the lady’s family.
This has to be so horrifying for Bruce. I hope he wasn’t texting while driving; if he was I have no sympathy here.
The Kardashians are going to spin this to show no compassion at all. That crew’s first concern is to protect the brand. Bruce is not part that family anymore but he’s still tied to them through Kendall and Kylie. There’s not enough naked pictures of Kim to put out there for the public to overlook a death.
Agreed. I am troubled that one of the first reports, whether it was Bruce, Kris or a combination of the Kardashian machine, was that the paps were chasing Bruce. The statement was obviously issued to deflect blame, but makes zero sense now that it appears the wreck was a chain reaction kind of thing. I’ll be very interested to see what the phone records show. I’m sorry but it is impossible for me to give any of the Kardashians,, Bruce included, the benefit of the doubt.
Everyone’s referring to the deceased woman as “elderly.” I read that she was 69 – that’s only four years older than Bruce is.
It doesn’t matter what the Prius did. If Bruce hadn’t slammed into the Lexus, the lady wouldn’t have been killed. The Hummer is big, yes, but was apparently safer for a family to use, since thankfully no one else died.
I know! I read that too and also that a little boy who was with her was on the scene crying. Probably a grandkid. Just awful 🙁
I know this was a tragic accident but I have to wonder if it would have been deadly if it wasn’t a Hummer that hit a small car. I don’t blame the family who owned the Hummer- it’s totally legal to do so. But can we have laws that don’t allow military type vehicles on the road? Arnold really needed his Hummer & changed the laws. I always worry about being rear ended or hit by those huge vehicles- it’s no match for a regular car.
Agreed. Those things are scary and really unnecessary. Armour up and be a menace to others! It’s the American Way.
The pictures of the woman’s horrified face at the moment of impact remind me of the movie Nightcrawler. Could you imagine just snapping away while a terrible accident is happening right in front of you? I hope that the pictures will help in the investigation, but we all know that was not the paps intent while taking them.
Wtf? Who’s posting pics of her face? That’s so horrifying and disrespectful to her family. Props to CB for not buying any of the pap pics.
NY Post, Rupert Murdoch, on par with Fox news and death porn. I wish I could unsee it.
The NY Post link shows her profile from the moment of impact from Bruce’s vehicle but well before her car collided with the Hummer.
She was wearing her seatbelt, by the way. Someone further upthread asked about that, and the picture shows her seatbelt clearly.
She also had a young boy with her, which just breaks my heart.
Wow…I didn’t know those photos existed. Just the thought gives me chills.
Can you imagine this poor woman’s family? This is the last picture they have of her. Disgusting on all these news sites part. They could have at least blurred it. How disrespectful.
I certainly hope that it does not turn out that Bruce Jenner was texting at the time of the crash. I have a REAL pet peeve for people who text while driving (or even talk on their phones while driving). Everyone who does it always says they can do two things at once – BS. I don’t know how many times I’ve screamed at cars in front of me who just sit there at a light because they are too busy yakking on their damn phones to notice the light turned green. Or people who swerves into my lane on a highway because they’re texting and trying to drive with their knee. Or the countless people who nearly rear-end me on a daily basis because they’re so busy offing with their phones to bother looking up to see that traffic has stopped. There is no conversation to be had – texting or talking – that’s worth more than the life of another human being. If you’re in the car, put the phone away. Out of reach. If you’re going to drive – then drive. If you want to fiddle with your phone, find a Starbucks.
New pics at TMZ show he was smoking not texting at impact
I’ll reserve judgement until the police and accident reconstruction team conclude their investigations.
FWIW: People towing trailers are much more of a potential menace on the roadways than those driving large SUV type vehicles.
Wealthy/famous people have been killing regular folks in car accidents for years. He won’t serve time or have disruptions to his privileged life. Let’s reserve empathy and healing thoughts to the family of the deceased and the other regular people involved.
That’s not fair. He might be famous but there are no indications he was doing anything wrong & he completely cooperated with police. It was a three car pile up. He has not been charged with any crime & car accidents happen every day to anyone. I stated above but I do wonder if it would have been deadly if a Hummer hadn’t been involved (it was not Jenner’s car). Not blaming the Hummer’s driver since it’s legal but I don’t think military type vehicles should be on the road- they are no match for a sedan.
There is every indication that he was doing something wrong. No matter what else did or didn’t happen, he was clearly not leaving a safe stopping distance.
Oh, good grief. What a ridiculous comment.
I ve just seen on the dailymail that kanye kylie and kendall where partying a few hours after the accident those people have no compassion at all
This Jenner saga took a bizarre turn. Very tragic. RIP to the lady.
I’ve been in a serious car crash before, but I was fortunate that everyone came out all right. We really take for granted how quickly our vehicles can become weapons in mere seconds. My heart goes out to the woman’s family and everyone involved. What an awful situation all around.
If this were you, I or Chris Brown; we’d be in jail. When the Trash Klan live / die by the paps, there is NO WAY Bruce was being chased. THEY call the paps to let them know where/when/why and how they will be. I feel horribly sorry for the lady whom died, her family and all others that were injured. But Bruce? Nope. First thing from his camps mouth was to lie.
Bruce didn’t say chased by paps or trying to get away, just that he was being followed per below:
“Jenner reportedly told deputies that he was being followed by paparazzi on PCH “like always” but that he was not trying to get away from them, an LASD Sgt. told NBC4.”
Nobody would be in jail yet off of this accident. The investigation isn’t complete. Bruce wasn’t drunk or high. There shows no evidence he was speeding. There was no light in that area and yet the Prius stopped or slowed. No one knows why yet. Either the Lexus hit the Prius and Bruce couldn’t stop in time or and hit the Lexus or the Prius stopped short, so then did the Lexus, and Bruce was either following too closely or distracted or it wasn’t his fault, he skidded and hit her, thus catapulting her into the other lane with unfortunately, of all the bad luck, a Hummer hitting her head on.
No one knows the whole story yet. It is a fatality accident investigation. There is nothing yet to charge him with because the a traffic homicide investigation has to be done. They have to do accident reconstruction, length of skid marks, angles of impact, estimation of speeds, etc., follow up on eyewitness statements, all the cellphone records of all four drivers, all video available of the paparazzi.
“The traffic homicide investigations unit is a highly trained group of corporals specializing in traffic crash reconstruction and investigation. They investigate all fatal traffic crashes handled by this agency as well as those which may lead to fatal injuries and those crashes requiring specialized investigative resources. Each Troop D District has a group of these investigators assigned.”
At least this is the way it is in Florida. You have to give them time to investigate a multiple car accident (four vehicles) and determine fault and/or criminal charges such as vehicular manslaughter.
…she’s just a friggin’ idiot.
They are now saying that Bruce slammed on his brakes and then swerved to the right to try to avoid hitting the Lexus. He therefore hit it from the right bumper, which pushed it into the oncoming traffic. I was wondering about that, how the car was pushed into the oncoming lane. Still, I think he has fault for rear ending the vehicle. If you rear end someone, you are either driving too close, or not paying attention. Meanwhile, it sounds like TMZ and the Kartrash are trying to pin it on the Prius driver, who says she was stopped at a red light, when hit by the lady in the Lexus. They say she was 300 feet back, but admit they don’t know if she was in a long line of cars stopped at the light. That often happens at PCH, very busy and dangerous, especially on weekends.
In view of my comments about the Kartrash above, I thought I should mention that Bruce is the exception. My mom and her friends regularly meet at the Starbucks in Westlake Village and Bruce frequently stops in after golfing at Lake Sherwood CC. They say he is very polite, holds the door open for people, waits in line, pays, tips and is never rude or condescending.
The NY Post has photos of Jenner driving today in a Porsche cigarette in hand-who the heck drives one day after being in a fatal wreck? Is he in shock of denial or cold blooded?
A complete narcissist who wants your sympathy because he is fixated on cross dressing.
I hope all of their tv shows get shut down and they move out of the area. Trash.
Accidents happen unfortunately. I’m not minimizing anything here by any stretch of the imagination. A woman died. A grandchild was with her and will carry this memory for his life. So will others involved–Bruce included. In the rush to assign blame…….there is nothing clear cut. The woman who died hit the car in front of her. Bruce hit her and tried to avoid it unsuccessfully. At the end of the day, from the law as I understand it, both the woman who died was at fault for following too closely as was Bruce for the same reason. Likely neither could have avoided it unless they drove slower and kept a greater distance between them and the car in front of them. They didn’t. Pray for all involved. Because this is just sad beyond belief and lets face it–it could have happened to any one of us. 13 years ago I hydro-planed on the freeway on a wet and rainy morning. I was preoccupied and not paying attention to my driving. I wasn’t speeding, but I wasn’t clearly cognizant of my driving either. I clipped the median, spun across 3 lanes of traffic….miraculously not hitting anything else. Craziness ensued behind me. However I hit no one and no one hit me. Others behind me weren’t so lucky. Technically I did nothing wrong per the police on the scene who decided it was “weather related” and I was the first excused from the scene. The woman behind me slammed on her breaks, was badly rear ended, and thankfully wasn’t hurt (certainly shaken though) and her car sustained much damage. She’s likely still mad as hell at me to this day. As is the guy who hit her, who got “tagged” with fault. The whole thing haunts me to this day, although no one was injured but for the grace of God(dess). If I remain haunted by this incident that did not end in tragedy–I cannot imagine but feel much sympathy for those involved in this incident.
So the pap’s were ready and waiting for Bruce to drive by at 50 mph?
Or were they there to get photos of a “stopped” Bruce Jenner?
The pap’s know where he is going, so all they need to do is set up across the street, to get head on and driver side shots.
And if a leading car in the same lane as Bruce, just happens to stop for no reason, causing Bruce Jenner to stop, all the better.
Unless everything goes to crap and someone dies.
Justsayin
So very sad for the lady who died. Hope they investigate it honestly and whoever responsible will get what’s coming for them if it’s an erratic, irresponsible driving. But accident do happen.
Sorry for Bruce too, hope it’s just an accident for his sake. Just being responsible for a death is enough punishment for life even if it’s an accident.