[dropcap size=big]A[/dropcap]t 7:20 on Saturday morning, a $260,000 sports car racing south down La Brea Avenue in Mid-City split a utility pole and itself in two. Half of the car hugged the corner of La Brea and 12th street, the other half crashed into an ivy wall on the southwest corner.
I caught the aftermath of the wreck a few hours later while on my way to work. It was the type of scene that makes you count your blessings and wonder if the people involved made it out alive. But what stood out to me the most was the tent sitting less than a foot away from the yellow caution tape along the ivy wall.
Saturday afternoon, the LAPD acknowledged the accident on their Twitter page and let the public know that the driver survived the crash. I was shocked. "A friendly reminder — it’s the value of human life that has no price tag," the police said. But they forgot to point out the innocent life that was most at risk in this case – the unhoused person in the tent.