Nicholas Gutiérrez, the 22-year-old Latino driver who hit 25 sheriff cadets when he was driving the wrong way down an avenue in Los Angeles, California, explained in an interview with the local NBC News station that the hit-and-run was unintentional;
his lawyer pointed out that he fell asleep at the wheel.
Gutierrez was arrested last week on suspicion of attempted murder, but was released without charge after a few days and the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department explained that further investigation was necessary.
“I didn't do it intentionally
,” Gutierrez told NBC4 in an interview with his family.
"I wish it never happened," he added, "I feel bad that it happened."
“They [the authorities] tried to say that I did it on purpose, which I didn't.
I kept telling them I didn't do it,” he added.
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His attorney, Alexandra Kazarian, told the Los Angeles Times that Gutierrez was driving to work as an electrical engineer at a solar panel company when he fell asleep at the wheel.
He had woken up at 5 in the morning.
The authorities assured that the accident occurred at 6:30 in the morning.
“He's a good guy who fell asleep on his way to work first thing in the morning
,” Kazarian said.
In the attack on November 16, 25 recruits from the sheriff's academy were injured, and several of them were left in critical condition, some lost part of their limbs, suffered brain injuries or fractures, according to the sheriff, Alex Villanueva.
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The recruits were running in formation on a street when a vehicle swerved onto the wrong side of the road and collided with them before crashing into a pole.
Police reported that day that the driver was not drunk or high.
Video showed a badly damaged dark pickup truck near a downed utility pole that was also struck by the driver.
Green, yellow and red triage mats were placed in the street, indicating the severity of the injuries.
"Nicholas comes from a proud law enforcement family and the injuries to these recruits are beyond heartbreaking," his attorney said.
