Hawthorne man charged with murder for 2025 crash on 405 Fre…

Hit And Run California Today in California: Mario Joseph Bickham, 36, of Hawthorne, was charged with two counts of murder for a June 23, 2025 crash on the southbound San Diego (405) Freeway just north of Moraga Drive near Bel-Air. LAPD Sgt. Deng, 53, had activated his patrol vehicle's emergency lights to alert oncoming motorists to a disabled Toyota pickup that had been struck by an unidentified hit-and-run driver. Bickham, allegedly driving a Nissan sedan at 112 mph, slammed into the patrol SUV and the sergeant. The pickup's driver, Garcia, who was outside his vehicle, was struck and died at the scene, while Deng was taken to Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and pronounced dead. Bickham suffered major injuries but survived and faces up to 15 years to life for each victim if convicted.