By Jennifer McLain and Ruby Gonzales
San Gabriel Valley Tribune
INDUSTRY, Calif. — A Santa Fe Springs CHP officer was killed early Monday when a car collided with another vehicle then hit him, authorities said.
Officer Joseph Sanders, 29, and his partner were working the graveyard shift around 4:20 a.m. when they encountered a pickup truck that spun out on the 60 Freeway near Azusa Avenue. While Sanders’ partner was talking to the driver, the second traffic accident occurred, fatally injuring the officer.
Officers closed the eastbound 60 freeway from the 605 freeway to Azusa Avenue for at least 8 hours as they investigated the scene.
Sanders, a Marine Corp veteran who fought in Iraq, had been on the job about a year. He lived in Carona and leaves behind a pregnant wife and three children ages 7, 3, and 10 months.
“These losses are tragic and we feel them deeply,’ CHP Capt. Dan Minor said.
The death was the agency’s first officer fatality of the year. Sanders is the 214th officer the CHP has lost since it was created in 1929, said spokesman Steve Cohler.
Last year, three CHP officers died in the line of duty statewide.
Sanders, who grew up in Lodi, was flown by helicopter to Los Angeles County USC Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
Officials said speeding may have resulted in the crash.
The drivers of the pickup and two cars were being questioned by CHP investigators. No one has been arrested.
The pickup truck and the two cars were still at the scene by mid-morning. The damaged pickup was in front of the patrol car.
The collision was one of many a rainy Monday morning.
The rain caused traffic collisions, flooding and back-ups throughout the San Gabriel Valley and Los Angeles County, CHP spokesman Terry Liu said.
“Drivers need to remember that in these weather conditions, they need to slow down, allow extra time to get to their destination, and make sure everything on their vehicle is working,” Liu said.
Copyright 2008 San Gabriel Valley Tribune