LOS ANGELES, CA (December 4, 2025) — A 19-year-old man killed in a four-vehicle collision on the Santa Monica (10) Freeway in the Mid-City neighborhood of Los Angeles has been identified. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Nathaniel Brown.
Accident Details: California Highway Patrol officers were called at 1:56 a.m. Wednesday to the eastbound freeway at the South La Brea Avenue exit where they found a silver Honda Civic and dark-colored Infinity had collided in the middle lanes of the freeway, CHP Officer Megan Curtis told City News Service.
Two other vehicles involved in the collision were reported to be on the right side of the freeway soon after the crash. One report logged by the CHP from a person who lived nearby indicated there was an initial crash and that another vehicle plowed into one of the involved vehicles.
The CHP issued a Sigalert after the crash, which initially closed all lanes of the eastbound freeway for the emergency response. All lanes were reopened and the Sigalert was canceled by 6:35 a.m.
Investigation: The California Highway Patrol is investigating the four-vehicle collision. Authorities have not released information about what caused the initial crash or which vehicle Brown was occupying.
Legal Considerations: Multi-vehicle freeway crashes often develop as chain reactions where one collision leads to subsequent impacts. When a witness reports that another vehicle plowed into one of the vehicles already involved in a crash, it raises questions about whether that driver was following too closely, speeding, or failed to notice the initial collision.
Brown’s death at age 19 represents a life barely begun. He had just reached adulthood and faced a future full of possibilities now permanently lost. His family faces decades of grief over milestones he will never reach.
Early morning freeway crashes raise concerns about visibility, driver fatigue, and impairment. When multiple vehicles collide in the middle lanes, it suggests either high speeds or driver inattention that prevented avoiding the initial crash or subsequent impacts.
Determining liability in four-vehicle crashes requires investigators to establish the sequence of collisions and identify which driver’s negligence initiated the chain of events. California’s comparative negligence system allows fault to be distributed among multiple parties based on their respective contributions to the crash.
Wrongful death claims seek compensation for funeral expenses, Brown’s pain and suffering before death, lost future income and support, and the devastating loss his family will endure. When a young person dies, the economic losses extend over many decades.
Our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Nathaniel Brown as they mourn this tragic loss.
Source: MyNewsLA