Here’s why Tiger Woods was NOT tested for drugs and alcohol after his horror rollover crash
TIGER Woods was not tested for drugs and alcohol following his horror car crash, it has been revealed.
The golf ace was hauled from the wreckage of an SUV he was driving before being rushed to hospital by paramedics in Los Angeles.
Follow our Tiger Woods live blog for all the latest news and stories…
He had emergency surgery on Tuesday night after firefighters had to cut him from the wreckage at an accident hotspot in Rancho Palos Verdes shortly after 7.15am that morning.
Woods reportedly hit a raised central reservation at “speed”, smashed through a street sign, hit a tree and then flipped a $50,000 Genesis GV80 SUV several times.
Following the horrific crash, law enforcement officers have dismissed any suggestion that he had alcohol or drugs in his system at the time of the incident.
Police sources told TMZ that there were no drugs or alcohol inside Tiger’s GV80 at the time – and he showed no signs of impairment as he was pulled out of the wreckage.
In order to draw blood to check if he was under the influence, cops would need a warrant – meaning they would require a probably cause.
‘NO EVIDENCE’
With no evidence suggesting impairment, police are not able to authorise such a move.
Woods, 45, was lucid after the horrific incident but had “no recollection of the crash itself” when quizzed by investigators, the LA County Sheriff said last night.
During a press conference on Wednesday morning LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva confirmed that Woods will not be facing criminal charges.
Asked whether or not any drugs of alcohol tests were done at the scene, Villanueva said: “The Deputy on the scene assessed the condition of Tiger Woods and there was no evidence of any impairment whatsoever.
“He was lucid – no evidence of alcohol, no evidence of any medication or narcotics.”
Reiterating his point, he added: “He was not drunk… Definitely we can throw that one out. There was no evidence of any impairment.”
The Sheriff added that there was a black box in the vehicle which will be pulled, suggesting “speed may be a factor in this accident.”
Photographs and bodycam footage was also captured at the scene and will be used for the department’s investigation.
Mr Villanueva added that the “speed involved” and the “driver’s inattention” were both possible explanations for the crash.
However, he said that the investigation team would need to pull the “black box” from Woods’ car in order to reach a conclusion on what caused the crash.
LA county Sheriff’s Deputy Carlos Gonzalez, who responded to the crash, told CNN that the seat belt Woods was wearing may have saved his life.
He said: “I do think the fact that he was wearing a seat belt and that the vehicle safety features worked as designed by the manufacturer likely resulted in either reducing his injury or saving his life.”
Yesterday, he was said to be “awake, responsive and recovering in his hospital room” as footage of him emerged behind the wheel which was filmed just before the crash.
Woods suffered horrific injuries to his leg after the incident, with medical experts fearing he may never play professional golf again.
Doctors said he suffered “comminuted” fractures in the upper and lower parts of the tibia and fibula – meaning the breaks had led to bone splintering.
They fitted metal rods, screws and pins to his shattered right shinbone and calf bone following the crash.
Nick Cullen, a consultant foot and ankle specialist at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital NHS Trust in London, told the Daily Telegraph that the injury was “very serious”.
He said: “In order for him to make a full recovery, he’d need to regain a near-normal range of movement in his ankle and in his foot.”
“Very often, after the breaks of the bones here, even if the bones heal up, there’s quite a lot of damage to the muscles and the tissues.
Most read in News
“I would say he has less than a 50 per cent chance of playing professional golf again.”
On Wednesday morning, Woods’ girlfriend was seen visiting him in hospital after his emergency surgery.
Erica Herman was pictured arriving at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center with a man believed to be Tiger’s longtime caddy, Joe LaCava.
