100-mph driver dies in high-speed crash

A man, who witnesses said drove about 100 miles per hour, was killed Sunday night after he crashed into the rear of a car on Interstate Highway 880 in San Jose, according to the California Highway Patrol.

At 10:08 p.m. Sunday, CHP officers in San Jose were dispatched to the scene of the two-car collision on the southbound side of I-880 at The Alameda, CHP Officer Ross Lee said.

From an investigation, officers learned that the male driver of a Mercedes sedan had struck the back of a Honda CR-V carrying three people, CHP officials said.

Witnesses told officers they noticed the driver of the Mercedes heading south on I-880 at a high speed of about 100 mph before losing control and striking the Honda, CHP officials reported. Honda also sped out of control due to the crash, struck the center divider wall and overturned on its side in the far left lane, officers said.

The Mercedes moved off the west edge of the roadway, preceded across the southbound I-880 on-ramp from The Alameda and struck a dirt embankment, ejecting the driver from the vehicle, CHP officials said.

Emergency responders from the San Jose Fire Department pronounced the driver of the Mercedes dead at the scene, the CHP reported. The three people in the Honda were transported to a hospital after complaining of pain from minor injuries, Lee said.

Officers have not ruled out alcohol as a factor in the fatal crash and are waiting for results of a toxicology report from the Santa Clara County medical examiner’s office, according to Lee.