2 women killed in Compton car crash not involved in street takeover, authorities say

Two women killed Sunday night during a traffic collision in Compton were not participating in a nearby street takeover during the crash, authorities said this week.

The women were in a red Honda sedan that collided with an SUV at the intersection of Wilmington Avenue and Stockwell Street in Compton around 11:30 p.m. Sunday, according to the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department. Investigators were initially unsure whether the women were involved in a street takeover at the intersection because a large number of spectators from the takeover rushed to the scene after the crash, Sgt. Michael Downing said Friday.

Investigators have determined the women were not participating in a takeover during the wreck. They were identified by the Los Angeles County coroner’s office as Michellie Gonzalez, 20, of Cudahy and Jennyfer Flores, 18, of Long Beach.

On Monday, Downing said that the crash was still under investigation and that authorities were not sure whether it was “related to a street takeover or there was one in the area.”

“I know there was one in the area prior to the collision,” Downing said, adding that the intersection is an active area for street takeovers.

But on Tuesday, the Sheriff’s Department updated the Compton City Council during a public meeting and said the wreck was not connected to an illegal street event.

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“Although the incident is an ongoing investigation, we can confidently share that the two fatalities that occurred at the intersection were not related to the street takeovers,” Deputy Craig Walker said.

KTLA-TV Channel 5 reported that the women in the Honda were driving in circles through the intersection before the collision. One woman was ejected from the car. Eyewitnesses told the news station that one woman was hanging out a window when the Honda collided with the SUV.

Approximately 200 people gathered at the intersection before the collision to watch the street takeover, in which drivers perform dangerous stunts in their vehicles, according to KTLA.

Treyshawn Cooley was driving the SUV involved in the collision, according to KABC-TV Channel 7, and was driving through the intersection around 45-50 mph when the Honda ran the red light.

“When I get to the light, the car comes out. I guess he didn’t see me ... my light was green ... I’m coming straight and they come out and I hit them,” Cooley told the news station. “First thing I do is take off my seatbelt and I get out of the car and it’s a whole bunch of people, and I guess it was a street takeover.”

Residents who live near the intersection where the crash occurred said the flash mobs of street takeovers have become weekly occurrences in their neighborhood.

One neighbor, who declined to be named, said the noise from drivers revving their engines and spectators gathering around to watch keeps him awake at night — sometimes until 4 a.m.

“I can hear it out my window,” he said. “We’re used to it, but we’re not used to it this bad.”