Driver arrested after crash into cadets

LOS ANGELES — Authorities have arrested a 22-year-old driver on suspicion of attempted murder after his vehicle plowed into Los Angeles County sheriff’s academy recruits on a training run, injuring more than two dozen people.

Nicholas Joseph Gutierrez was arrested Wednesday for investigation of attempted murder on a peace officer, the Los Angeles County sheriff’s office said in a statement Thursday.

While Gutierrez has not been formally charged with a crime, prosecutors can only file a charge of attempted murder if they believe he intended to kill the runners, a criminal defense lawyer said.

Authorities have said that a man driving an SUV early Wednesday veered onto the wrong side of the road in suburban Whittier, crashing into recruits on a morning run. Five of them were critically injured.

The scene after the crash was chaotic, and authorities said it looked like an airplane wreck. Deputies got help from a nearby county fire station and immediately transported some of the most badly injured directly to hospitals.

Authorities said a field sobriety test performed on the driver was negative.

Gutierrez is being held without bail and is scheduled to appear in court today, online jail records show. It’s not immediately known whether he has an attorney who can speak on his behalf.

There were about 75 recruits from the Los Angeles sheriff’s office and several local police agencies running in formation in the street just before 6:30 a.m. when the crash occurred.