Fairfax District, CA - Woman Killed, Four Hurt as Car Plows Into Pedestrians Outside Trader Joe's

Fairfax District, California (September 3, 2026) - The Los Angeles Fire Department confirmed one woman was killed and four other people were injured after a car struck pedestrians in a shopping center parking lot near Third Street and Fairfax Avenue.

The crash happened shortly before 1:30 p.m. on September 3, when the driver of a Tesla struck a security stand in front of the parking lot shared by Trader Joe's, Mendocino Farms, and Sidecar Doughnuts at the Gilmore Station shopping center, across the street from The Grove.

One victim, described only as a woman in her 30s, was pronounced dead at the scene, the fire department said. A 19-year-old man suffered serious injuries. Two women, ages 30 and 57, suffered minor injuries.

The driver, a 91-year-old woman, was also hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries, according to the fire department. No arrest has been announced.

A witness who lives near the scene said the driver told him her foot was on the brake, but the car kept accelerating and she could not stop it before the collision.

Aerial footage from the scene showed firefighters treating the injured near the Tesla, which came to rest with its airbags deployed.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said she was saddened by the crash near Third Street and Fairfax Avenue, and confirmed her office deployed Crisis Response Team members to the scene, with police personnel remaining on-site.

Law enforcement sources said the crash appears to have been an accident involving the elderly driver, though the cause remains under investigation.

This is a developing story. Details may change as the investigation continues.

Fatal Pedestrian Accidents in Los Angeles, California

When a car strikes pedestrians in a parking lot or shopping center, the driver is not always the only party who may share responsibility.

• Who may be liable: the driver, and potentially the property owner or management company if inadequate bollards, barriers, or spacing between the drive lane and the storefront contributed to the danger
• What investigators examine: the vehicle's own event data recorder, which can confirm or rule out a sudden acceleration claim, along with surveillance footage from nearby businesses and witness statements
• For the surviving victims: a personal injury claim can move forward even while the fatal crash investigation continues
• Comparative fault: a pedestrian struck in a parking lot is rarely found at fault, but California law still allows a claim to proceed even if some fault is later assigned to another party

Under California law, a wrongful death claim generally must be filed within two years of the date of death (CCP 377.60). For the survivors, a personal injury claim carries the same two-year deadline (CCP 335.1). Both fall on September 3, 2028 for this crash.

Contact Our Los Angeles Wrongful Death Attorneys

Whether you lost someone in this crash or you were among the four people hurt, the days ahead are overwhelming, and no family should have to face them alone.

Christian Contreras Law has recovered more than $200 million for injured and grieving clients across Los Angeles, including a $5 million wrongful death settlement, and our Los Angeles wrongful death attorneys take cases to trial when insurance companies will not offer a fair resolution. Our attorneys have represented families across Southern California after crashes that started as an ordinary errand and ended in tragedy, and we know how to build a case around exactly the kind of evidence this crash will produce, from vehicle data to surveillance footage.

Surveillance footage from nearby businesses is often overwritten within days, and a vehicle's own data can be the clearest evidence of what happened in the seconds before impact, so it needs to be preserved now, before it is gone. If you were among those injured in this crash, medical documentation from the first days matters just as much, since insurance companies look for any gap to argue your injuries were not as serious as you say.

We work on contingency, so there is no cost to talk with us and nothing owed unless we recover for you.

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• $200M+ recovered for clients
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Legal Disclaimer

This page is attorney advertising and is provided for general informational purposes only. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Incident information is based on publicly available reports and may change as the investigation continues. The Law Offices of Christian Contreras is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any law enforcement or emergency response agency. Past results do not guarantee future outcomes, and no outcome is promised or implied.