A 64-year-old California man was killed while teaching his teen daughter to drive, the Laguna Beach Police Department (LBPD) confirmed to Fox News Digital on Wednesday. LBPD also told Fox News Digital that the 15-year-old had a learner’s permit.

The fatal crash took place late Monday afternoon on the Golden State’s Coast Highway. James Politoski was the only passenger in the vehicle, according to Fox 11, a Fox News affiliate. 

LOS ANGELES TOUR BUS CRASH LEAVES 1 DEAD, 32 HOSPITALIZED ON MOTHER’S DAY

The teen girl, whose name is being withheld because she is a minor, “sustained significant injuries,” according to LBPD. She is expected to survive.

The vehicle reportedly broke through a fence barrier before rolling down an embankment and flipping upside down onto the highway, according to Fox 11. 

A tragic Memorial Day crash claimed the life of James Politoski, 64, who was teaching his daughter to drive when their vehicle went off the road. (KTTV)

DRIVER SUDDENLY STOPS IN MIDDLE OF HIGHWAY, CAUSES MULTI-CAR CRASH, THEN LEAVES: VIDEO

“This is a heartbreaking situation that not only impacts the immediate families involved but also deeply affects our entire community,” LBPD’s Lieutenant Jesse Schmidt told Fox News Digital. “It is always difficult when an accident leads to the loss of life—especially under circumstances where a parent was simply trying to do the right thing by teaching their child a valuable life skill.”

Schmidt also expressed the department’s condolences to the family and friends of Politoski.

While teaching his daughter to drive on Memorial Day, James Politoski, 64, was killed in a crash; she sustained significant but non-life-threatening injuries. (KTTV)

The cause of the crash is still under investigation.
 

It’s coyote pupping season, and this is the time of year people may encounter more confrontations with them.

Those at Golden Gate Park recently noticed park rangers educating dog owners about an incident over the past weekend.

Howling coyotes at Golden Gate Park near Lindley Meadows, a popular spot where dog owners walk and play with their pups. Brandon Hartstein and his dog Oden encountered a pack of coyotes in the area about a year ago.

“We were walking on a trail that’s not too popular and all of a sudden, three coyotes just appeared and started kind of stalking us,” said Hartstein.

Similar stories of coyote encounters are surfacing this year. Lauren Roche watched her dog get chased by coyotes.

“She was running along the grassy area and I was running in the path that doesn’t have cars, and there were two coyotes that started chasing after her,” said Roche.

“And I look over, wow, they’re going so fast, and it was two coyotes chasing after her. Luckily, she was fast enough to outrun them, and I called her back over and they ended up going away.”

Signs like these are posted in Golden Gate Park to warn people about these potential run-ins with coyotes. Experts say coyotes are just protective during pupping season and are not displaying unprovoked aggression. They say the best thing to do is to shorten the leash and walk in the other direction. Something Hartstein tried to do.

“We kept on walking away,” said Hartstein. “I was making loud sounds trying to scare them off, and eventually we started running. Luckily, a biker came by and I flagged him down and he helped to chase them off.”

Some dog owners have noticed coyotes getting bolder and becoming used to humans in their territory. They say with these canines all over the Bay Area, the key is to limit conflicts and coexist with each other.

“I just kind of try to adjust my way of living because it’s part of where they live,” said Roche. “I wouldn’t have to adjust for someone coming into my home.”

DENVER — Paul Noel Fiorino has run for mayor of Denver, Colorado governor, and U.S. Senate, but he’s more musician than politician these days.

Fiorino will be playing harmonica and guitar at Skyline Plaza along 16th Street in downtown Denver this week.

“Essentially, they’re paying us to be here as part of the network of performers that the 16th Street has hired,” he told Denver7 on Thursday.

In March, the Denver City Council approved an additional $1.5 million to revive the former 16th Street Mall as it goes through a rebrand. That money is now being put to work to pay performers like Fiorino and fill vacant storefronts with art displays. Those include one storefront now decorated with an array of colorful cowboy hats, and another with dozens of giant straws hanging from the ceiling.

Read our previous coverage below:

This week, a Memorial Day EDM concert brought thousands of people to 16th Street, but also left questions. One viewer reached out to Denver7 asking, “What is planned to bring families, those with or without children, back into downtown?”

We took that question directly to Denver leaders.

“We have over 90 days of events this summer, so there’s something for everyone on 16th Street,” said Kate Barton, chief of external affairs for the Downtown Denver Partnership.

Downtown leaders are betting big on this weekend’s free “summer kickoff” celebration, with family-friendly activities including the World Cup of Speed Climbing. A large rock climbing wall has gone up near 16th and Welton.

Just blocks away at Civic Center Park this weekend, Outside Festival organizers are expecting about 25,000 people after an 18,000-person turnout last year. The hope is that the event drives even more people to 16th.

“There’s so much to celebrate in downtown right now,” said Barton.

However, the same viewer also asked Denver7, “What is the plan to address high cost and low availability to safe parking?” Denver7 also brought that question to Barton.

“We have a couple of opportunities with partners for some parking deals,” she said. “The Denver Performing Arts Complex has a parking deal before 10:30 in the morning if you’re bringing your family. There’s also some other affordable opportunities around. We also always encourage the use of transit to come downtown on the weekends.”

Barton hopes this weekend sets the stage for a busy summer downtown.

“This is really for us to be able to showcase everything that we’ve invested in as a city, and to start to invite people to experience it themselves,” she said.