A man died on July 4 in a suspected suicide on the Pacific Coast Highway.
According to Sergeant Roberto Villegas with the Santa Monica Police Department, the first call came into SMPD from a California Highway Patrol dispatcher at about 4:39 a.m. A passerby had called to report someone down in the first lane of the Pacific Coast Highway near the Broadway Bridge.
He said officers arrived and found the body in the street. They were then approached by a driver who said he had just struck an unknown object while driving. The driver had immediately pulled over and walked back up the road where he encountered the police officers.
Villegas said the driver was cooperative and took a breathalyzer test as part of the standard investigation protocol. The test returned a zero measurement for alcohol.
“The victim jumped from what we call the Broadway Bridge,” said Villegas. “It’s the bridge opposite Broadway that leads down onto the PCH. We don’t know if he died from the impact or from the vehicle at this time.”
Villegas said officers found a pair of shoes on the bridge and the body was missing shoes but otherwise. He said SMPD will conduct a full investigation but does not have any evidence pointing to foul play. He said the incident appeared to be a suicide with a related traffic collision and that officers are waiting for additional information from the coroner’s office before determining the cause of death.
The coroner’s office has identified the victim as Lucius DeShawn Wade.
The incident is the third of its kind recently. SMPD officers prevented two suicides in the past year involving individuals threatening to jump from the 4th Street and Lincoln bridges.
