Los Angeles County, CA — January 14, 2026, Elya Tsatinyan was killed and three others were injured in a truck accident just before noon on State Highway 138/Pearblossom Highway.

Authorities said a westbound 2012 Chevrolet sedan and an eastbound 2015 Peterbilt semi-truck hauling two bottom-dump trailers loaded with gravel collided near 195th Street East. The truck also crashed into a 2026 Range Rover that was heading west.

A passenger in the Range Rover, identified only as Elya Tsatinyan, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, according to authorities.

Three other people involved in the crash were hospitalized with unspecified injuries, authorities said. Two were flown to a local trauma center.

Authorities have not released any additional information about the Los Angeles County crash at this time.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When people hear that a truck collided with two different vehicles, one coming from the opposite direction and one traveling in the same direction, the first thing they want to know is, how does that even happen? Did the truck cross the center line? Did another vehicle veer into its path? Or was there something else at play?

Right now, the available information leaves us with more questions than answers. All we know is that a gravel truck traveling east on Pearblossom Highway reportedly collided with a westbound Chevrolet sedan, then also struck a westbound Range Rover. A passenger in the Range Rover died, and three others were seriously injured. But what caused the initial collision? That remains unclear.

Depending on how the crash unfolded, the legal questions change dramatically. If the truck drifted over the center line, that raises immediate concerns about the driver's alertness and control of the vehicle. Was he distracted? Fatigued? Was there a mechanical failure that caused him to lose control? If the crash was initiated by the car crossing into the truck's path, we’d need to know whether the trucker had any chance to avoid the collision. Until those facts come out, it’s impossible to fairly assign blame.

One of the first steps in a proper investigation is to secure and analyze the truck’s black box, or engine control module data. That will tell us whether the truck was braking, accelerating or making steering inputs in the moments leading up to the crash. Dash camera footage, if available, could shed light on lane positions and reaction times. And the trucker’s cell phone records should be reviewed to rule out the possibility that he was distracted.

Given that this truck was hauling two trailers filled with gravel, it’s also worth asking: Did the weight of the load play a role? Gravel is heavy, and pulling two full trailers down a two-lane highway leaves very little room for error. If the load was improperly balanced or if the braking system wasn’t functioning correctly, the truck may have been difficult to control. That’s not something most drivers on the road would know to worry about, but it’s exactly the kind of thing a thorough investigation should explore.

I’ve handled cases where a driver’s history raised serious red flags. In one case, the company had hired a driver who had been fired multiple times before and barely tested his driving ability before sending him out with a loaded truck. That wasn’t just a driver issue; it was a company failure, and the evidence made that clear. The same kind of scrutiny will be necessary here, especially if it turns out that the truck initiated the sequence of collisions.

At the end of the day, the real story of this crash won’t come from the brief statements in the news. It’ll come from examining the physical evidence, the electronic records and the decisions made by everyone involved, from the truck driver up to the company that put him on the road.

Key Takeaways:

• It’s not yet clear how the truck ended up hitting two vehicles traveling in opposite directions.
• Critical evidence will come from the truck’s black box, dash cams and driver cell phone records.
• The gravel load and double-trailer configuration may raise questions about control and stopping distance.
• A full investigation should look into both driver conduct and trucking company hiring practices.
• Assigning blame before the facts are known does more harm than good; answers come from evidence, not assumptions.