Petaluma Teen Paralyzed In Diving Accident Dies In Car Crash
PETALUMA (CBS SF) - A 19-year-old Petaluma man who was paralyzed in a diving accident a year ago was killed in a crash on U.S. Highway 101 in Marin County on Sunday afternoon.
Daniel "Danny" Cox was driving a modified 2005 Dodge Magnum at about 60 to 70 mph when he allowed the car to drift to the right, CHP Officer Chris Rardin said.
The Dodge went off the roadway and struck a tree just south of the Redwood Landfill near Novato around 5:40 p.m., Rardin said. Cox died at the scene.
There were no skid marks leaving the roadway, and debris from the car was strewn as far as 300 feet from the crash site, CHP officials said.
On Aug. 10, 2010, Cox broke his neck and became paralyzed from the chest down when he dove into shallow water at a South Lake Tahoe beach.
His family said he still had use of his hands and arms, and Rardin said the Dodge had been modified to allow Cox to drive.
Cox was a graduate of Petaluma High School, where he played football and was on the track and field team. He was one of Northern California's regional long-jump champions.
He was enrolled in the fire science program at Santa Rosa Junior College.
Cox got his driver's license on July 26 and had been driving to physical therapy sessions, his family said on a website that chronicled his recovery.
He was to be measured this week for a less bulky wheelchair he could fold up and put in his car, his family said on Thursday.
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