Officer Lauren Craven, 25, of the La Mesa Police Department, was tragically hit and killed while helping at the site of a multi-vehicle incident on Interstate 8 near Fairmount Avenue in San Diego County, California, on the night of Monday, October 20, 2025, at about 10:30 p.m.
At first, there were two cars involved, and one of them rolled over and landed on its roof in the eastbound lanes. After that, a third car hit the flipped car, killing the 19-year-old male driver.
Officer Craven was on her way back from her duty at the San Diego Central Jail when she saw what happened and stopped her patrol cruiser to help. She got out of her car to help even though she hadn’t been told to get there.
While she was helping, another automobile came up and crashed into the scene, injuring Officer Craven and other people nearby. A fifth car was involved after the incident. The site found that both Officer Craven and the 19-year-old driver of the car that had flipped over were dead.
The California Highway Patrol looked into the string of accidents and found the driver or drivers who caused the next ones. The police haven’t said yet if being impaired, distracted, or going too fast were factors.
The Officer Lauren Craven
Officer Lauren Craven joined the La Mesa Police Department as a patrol officer in February 2024. A few weeks before she died, she turned 25.
People who worked with her stated she was a bold, powerful, and kind young officer who really wanted to serve people in her neighborhood. People know her for being friendly and wanting to help others, even when she wasn’t working.
Lauren’s dad said that she wanted to be a police officer because she was attacked while she was in college. This made her desire to help people the same way a detective helped her.
We don’t know what happened next or how the community reacted.
The La Mesa Police Department said they were very sorry about her death and called her last actions “selfless and heroic.”
Governor Gavin Newsom ordered the flags at the California State Capitol to fly at half-staff in her honor.
People in the San Diego area, including police, community residents, and governmental officials, honored Officer Craven’s bravery and service. Her death also brought back public reminders of how crucial the Move Over Law is. This law says that cars must slow down and, where it is safe to do so, change lanes to make room for emergency or service vehicles that have stopped.
More Details
The eastbound lanes of Interstate 8 near Fairmount Avenue had to be closed all overnight so that investigators could look into what happened and clean up. The freeway opened again the next day at 1 p.m.
Officer Craven was one of several first responders and wonderful people who stopped to aid. Some of them were hurt, but we don’t know what happened to them.
The City of La Mesa and the La Mesa Police Department are working together to create a memorial for her.
