Rescue in Encino
Recently released images from the scene of a fatal accident in Encino last month show the moments when Los Angeles Police Department officers tried to save three teenagers from the burning vehicle.
Around 12:15 a.m. on February 20, officers spotted a Toyota Camry driving on Balboa Avenue with its lights off.
The officers decided not to initiate a pursuit, but the vehicle, which contained three friends who lived near each other, accelerated anyway before crashing into a traffic pole at Balboa and Ventura Boulevard, according to the police.
The officers used their batons to enter the vehicle, which was being driven by a 14-year-old unlicensed female.
The driver and the front-seat passenger, an 18-year-old who had to be dragged away from the burning car due to a leg injury, were the only ones who got out.
The back-seat passenger, 16-year-old Destiny Villanueva, was pronounced dead at the scene.
At one point in the video, the police indicate that they believe there were only two people in the car, and when an officer tries to get another fire extinguisher to check on Villanueva, another officer tells him "that person is gone, she's in the back seat."
It is not yet clear if the driver will face charges for the accident, but the police confirmed that she "showed no signs of impairment" after the crash.
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