Suspected Street Race Kills Woman Driver In Crash, 2-Year Old Unharmed

(FOX 11 / CNS) A woman was killed today when her car was rear-ended by an apparently speeding vehicle in the Mid-City area of Los Angeles, causing her to crash into a utility pole, police said.

The rollover crash occurred in the 5200 block of West Washington Boulevard around 1:45 a.m., according to the Los Angeles Police Department.

The woman, who was in her 30s, died at the scene, said coroner's Assistant Chief Ed Winter. Her name was withheld, pending family notification.

Her 2-year-old daughter, riding in the Nissan Altima with her, was unharmed but hospitalized as a precaution, police said.

LAPD Capt. Edward Pape told FOX 11 that security videos would play a key role in the investigation. "We did find four different videos from the area, and at this time, we are trying to enhance those videos to get a better shot of what actually occurred," Pape said.

"It appears that a car at a high rate of speed was traveling eastbound on Washington, and struck the victim, unfortunately, from behind, causing her to lose control of her vehicle, and die as a result," Pape said.

Two cars apparently stopped at the scene after the crash, but the motorists drove away, Pape said.

"That's tragic," Pape said. "If you're involved in an accident, you need to stop and render aid and make sure somebody is OK. In this case here, they didn't."

Police were trying to determine if street racing or road rage were involved in the crash, Pape said.