CHP Officer, 2 Others Killed in Head-On Crash
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PALM SPRINGS — A California Highway Patrol officer from the Indio station on his way to help a disabled motorist was killed in a head-on collision Sunday morning that also took the lives of two other people. He was the second officer from the small desert station killed in the past month.
Officer Dan Muehlhausen, 30, was traveling alone east on California 62 outside Twentynine Palms, a busy thoroughfare for Sunday travelers returning from Joshua Tree National Park, when the fatal accident occurred.
A mini pickup truck, apparently attempting to pass other traffic, crossed over the dividing line and straight into the patrol car, authorities said. The 20-year-old driver and his 18-year-old passenger, both from San Diego County, were killed; their names were not released. The cause of the accident was under investigation.
Muehlhausen, a two-year veteran of the force, was one of many officers at the May 15 funeral of colleague Saul Martinez, who died after pushing his partner to safety in the face of an oncoming car.
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