SANTA CRUZ — A 34-year-old Santa Cruz woman died in a solo vehicle crash in the mountains north of Santa Cruz Saturday.
Sgt. Dee Baldwin of the Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s Office identified the victim as Jennifer Gross of Bonny Doon.
The California Highway Patrol said a 35-year-old Santa Cruz man was driving a 2007 Toyota Tacoma west on Felton Empire Road just before midnight when, for unknown reasons, he lost control.
With Gross as his front-seat passenger, the Tacoma barreled off the road and down a steep embankment and crashed into a tree. While the driver suffered major injures, Gross was pronounced dead at the scene, the CHP said.
The cause of the crash is still under investigation and the CHP said drugs or alcohol do not appear to be contributing factors in the incident.
