Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva told TMZ on Wednesday that investigators have determined the cause of the Tiger Woods car crash but won’t be releasing details to the public at this time.
Villanueva cited “privacy issues” and claimed the golfer’s personnel have not signed off on the information to be made public.
“A cause has been determined, the investigation has concluded,” 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.”
Woods got into a serious crash on Feb. 23 in which his vehicle tipped over in the hills of Southern California. Woods, 45, received emergency surgery on his upper and lower tibia and fibula, as first reported by the Associated Press. The golfer was unconscious upon being approached by a witness.
Tiger Woods’ vehicle after the crash this morning that now has him in surgery for what his agent is calling “multiple leg injuries.” pic.twitter.com/VbI5qvyj8g
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) February 23, 2021
This morning @LMTLASD responded to a roll-over collision in which @TigerWoods was injured. Please see our statement… pic.twitter.com/cSWOxKZC1w
— LA County Sheriffs (@LASDHQ) February 23, 2021
Police have not sought a search warrant for Woods’ blood samples in order to probe for drug or alcohol consumption. Woods has a history of drug and alcohol addiction, having checked into a clinic in 2017 following a charge of driving under the influence in Florida.
According to an affidavit, the golfer claimed he was unaware of how the crash occurred. The Los Angeles County Superior Court obtained a search warrant for the data recorder in his car called a “black box.”
“We have all the contents of the black box, we’ve got everything,” the Sheriff said. “It’s completed, signed, sealed, and delivered. However, we can’t release it without the permission of the people involved in the collision.”
The golfer spent three weeks at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. He is now in Florida recovering. At the time of the wreckage, police said there was “no evidence of impairment.” Given that Woods was not tested for evidence, proof for this initial claim remains to be seen.
While the Sheriff has not released the cause of the crash, he previously said it was an “accident” and not a deliberate act. Woods has not released any statements since the crash.
