Elderly Man Says It's Not His Fault He Plowed His SUV Onto Santa Monica Sidewalk

SANTA MONICA (CBSLA.com) — The 89-year-old driver who struck a pedestrian after he lost control of his SUV and plowed into a busy Santa Monica sidewalk on Friday said the accident wasn't his fault.

The incident happened around 1:45 p.m. near the corner of 2nd Street and Arizona Avenue.

Police believe Jacob Seifert ran a red light, crashed into another car, veered onto the sidewalk and then hit a 20-year-old woman.

The elderly driver said that's not exactly what happened.

"Somebody hit very fast because the car go into the sideway.  And the hood is coming up. I don't see nothing," said Seifert. "I'm very sorry for her. But this is not my fault. What can I do?"

Resident Carlos Lopez saw the accident first-hand.

"The guy was stepping on the accelerator, for sure. You could hear the roar of the engine," he said.

Lopez said when he heard the crunching sound of the metal it reminded him of when 86-year-old George Weller killed 10 people after he drove though a farmers market in 2003.

He said Weller's car came to a stop nearly where Seifert's SUV landed.

"The guy ironically ended up right here too with someone on top of the hood. Someone underneath," said Lopez.

Police said the victim in Friday's crash suffered minor injuries and is expected to recover.

The young woman told witnesses that she had arrived from Pennsylvania an hour earlier for spring break.