Bruce Jenner crash investigation focusing on phone records
Jenner says he was not texting, will cooperate with investigation
The victim in Saturday's deadly crash involving former Olympic gold medalist Bruce Jenner was driving with an expired license, authorities said Monday.
California Department of Motor Vehicle records showed the license of 69-year-old Kim Howe license had expired in 2007. Howe was driving a Lexus sedan that was rear-ended by Jenner's Cadillac Escalade on the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, Calif. After it was hit, the Lexus veered into oncoming traffic and collided head-on with a black Hummer.
Los Angeles County sheriff's Sgt. Philip Brooks said that the Lexus had slammed into a Toyota Prius that had stopped on the highway. Brooks told the Los Angeles Times that it was not clear why the vehicle had stopped.
"If the light ahead was red and traffic backed up, then it's hard to believe the Hummer would have come at a substantial speed, as it did," Brooks said, before adding that it is not uncommon for vehicles to make U-turns on the highway, which is the main road leading north along the California coast from Los Angeles and Santa Monica to Malibu, Ventura County, and points north.
Brooks added that tire marks left on the road appeared to show that Jenner tried to brake before hitting the Lexus. The spokesman also said that while paparazzi were following Jenner, he did not appear to be trying to outrun them.
The moment of impact was captured by celebrity photographers, who quickly posted the images on the Internet. The photos show the white Lexus mangled in the front and back, facing the Hummer, which had a heavily damaged engine and its hood popped open. Jenner's Escalade, which was pulling an off-road vehicle on a trailer, had a damaged front end.
Meanwhile Monday, authorities were contacting Jenner and other drivers involved in the crash to obtain their cell phone records, which Brooks said was standard procedure in a fatal crash.
Jenner's publicist denied late Sunday that the 1976 Olympic decathlon champion was texting while driving, which is illegal in California.
Sheriff's investigators will examine photographs of the crash. They also were seeking witnesses, and any photos or videos from bystanders, including paparazzi, in what's expected to be a months-long investigation, Brooks said.
Jenner passed a field sobriety test and voluntarily submitted a blood sample to determine whether he was intoxicated, authorities said.
The sheriff's department has custody of all the vehicles involved and will be inspecting them to ensure they are mechanically sound or whether a defect prevented somebody from stopping in time.
Information gleaned from the cellphone records could help inform prosecutors, if they were to consider charges against any of the drivers.
The crash comes at a time of widespread talk that Jenner, 65, is becoming a woman. Though Jenner has declined to publicly comment, his appearance has gradually become more traditionally feminine. Those in his inner circles have not challenged speculation that he is preparing to live as a woman and perhaps will appear in a new reality series about his transition.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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