Police Sergeant Curtis Massey, a Pacific Palisades resident with a wife and three children, was killed in a head-on collision on the Santa Monica Freeway just west of National Boulevard at about 5 a.m. on Wednesday, January 28. The driver of a silver Toyota Camry, who was driving the wrong way on the eastbound freeway, was also killed in the collision. Massey, a 17-year veteran with the Culver City Police Department, was driving to work in an unmarked police car when his Dodge Charger was struck by Camry driver Luis Palma, 21, of Van Nuys. Massey’s car was instantly engulfed in flames and both cars were totaled, closing eastbound traffic. Wreckage spilled across the highway divider into the westbound lanes, closing several lanes of that side of the freeway. According to California Highway Patrol Officer Travis Ruiz, an eyewitness placed Palma entering the freeway at Fairfax Avenue. He drove nearly four miles before hitting Massey’s car. Ruiz told the Palisadian-Post on Monday that Palma’s final 24 hours are being scrutinized to discover why he made the fatal mistake of entering and driving on the wrong side of the freeway. According to Ruiz, Palma was at his home until about midnight, when he left accompanied by a woman. Investigators are trying to track down the woman. As of Monday, the CHP was still awaiting a toxicology report. According to Corpus Christi Church spokesperson Carol Sanborn, a vigil service will be held tonight at 7:30 p.m. at Corpus Christi Church on Sunset Boulevard, with a reception to follow immediately in the parish hall at 890 Toyopa Dr. A funeral mass will be held tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in downtown Los Angeles. Parking fees will be waived for the funeral and burial will follow at the Holy Cross Cemetery in Culver City. Those wishing to contribute to the Sergeant Curtis Massey Memorial Fund can go to www.culvercitypolice.com.
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