Investigators working to determine the cause of the Tiger Woods crash have obtained data stored in the “black box” of the luxury SUV he was driving, according to a report.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department executed a search warrant to gather information, which could show the vehicle’s speed before the collision and whether its brakes were applied, authorities told USA Today .
“We are trying to determine if a crime was committed,” Sheriff’s Deputy John Schloegl told reporters.
“If someone is involved in a traffic collision, we have to rebuild the traffic collision. If there was reckless driving, if someone was carrying the cell phone or something. If there has been no crime, we will close the case and there will be a regular traffic collision ”.
Woods was driving a Genesis GV80 in 2021 alone when he veered off the median on Hawthorne Boulevard, Rancho Palos Verdes, veered off the road and crashed into a tree.
The legendary golfer broke several bones in his lower right leg and is still recovering in hospital.
A forensic vehicle expert had told USA Today that it appeared Woods was not paying attention in the moments leading up to the devastating crash.
“For me, this is like a classic case of falling asleep behind the wheel, because the road curves and your vehicle goes straight,” Jonathan Cherney, a consultant who serves as an expert witness in court cases, told reporters .
Felix Lee, an accident reconstruction expert, said at the start: “My feeling is that speed was not an issue. It was just a kind of inattention that caused the braking strike.”