Los Angeles County sheriff has on Wednesday said detectives have determined what caused Tiger Woods to crash his SUV in Southern California but would not release details, citing unspecified privacy concerns for the golf star.
On February 23, Woods suffered serious injuries in a car crash when he struck a raised median around 7 a.m. in Rolling Hills Estates, just outside Los Angeles.
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The SUV he was driving crossed through two oncoming lanes and uprooted a tree on a downhill stretch that police said is known for wrecks. Woods is in Florida recovering from multiple surgeries.
Sheriff Alex Villanueva has been criticized for his comments about the crash, calling it “purely an accident” and saying there was no evidence of impairment.
Woods told deputies he did not know how the crash occurred and didn’t remember driving. He was unconscious when a witness first approached the mangled SUV. However, a sheriff’s deputy said the athlete later appeared to be in shock but was conscious and able to answer basic questions.
Investigators did not seek a search warrant for Woods‘ blood samples, which could be screened for drugs and alcohol. In 2017, Woods checked himself into a clinic for help in dealing with prescription drug medication after a Driving Under Influence (DUI) charge in his home state of Florida.
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Detectives, however, did obtain a search warrant for the data recorder of the 2021 Genesis GV80 SUV, known as a black box. However, Villanueva would not say what data had been found in the black box.
“A cause has been determined, the investigation has concluded,” Villanueva said during a live social media event on Wednesday.
However, he claimed investigators need permission from Woods — who previously named his yacht “Privacy” — to release information about the crash.
Villanueva said;
We have reached out to Tiger Woods and his personnel. There’s some privacy issues on releasing information on the investigation so we’re going to ask them if they waive the privacy and then we will be able to do a full release on all the information regarding the accident.
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He added;
We have all the contents of the black box, we’ve got everything. It’s completed, signed, sealed and delivered. However, we can’t release it without the permission of the people involved in the collision.
Meanwhile, Greg Risling, a spokesperson for Los Angeles County district attorney, in an email on Wednesday said no felony or misdemeanour complaints against Woods had been filed through their office regarding the crash.
Woods is from the Los Angeles area and was back home to host his PGA tournament, the Genesis Invitational at Riviera Country Club, which ended two days before the crash. He was driving an SUV loaned to him by the tournament.
The golfer has never gone an entire year without playing, dating back to his first PGA Tour event as a 16-year-old in high school.
