Saturday night, Lubbock’s already cursed intersection at 34th & University got a new entry in its long résumé of disasters when 20-year-old Javier Valenzzuela told police he intentionally rammed an SUV in an apparent suicide attempt. Unfortunately, instead of just destroying his own car—and possibly the will to live of anyone stuck behind him—he ended up seriously injuring a 23-year-old passenger, moderately injuring the 25-year-old SUV driver, and slamming them both into a minivan driven by a 61-year-old who absolutely did not sign up for any of this.
Police say Valenzuela was headed east on 34th when he plowed into the back of the SUV, sending it forward into the minivan crossing University. Everyone involved was taken to UMC, while Valenzuela reportedly refused treatment for his own minor injuries. A Major Crimes callout was issued, investigators arrived, and shockingly, everyone agreed this was not just “normal Lubbock traffic behavior,” but in fact intentional.
Valenzuela was arrested and booked on three counts of aggravated assault—because, yes, even in Lubbock, “I meant to do it” is still not a legal defense. The intersection remains open, because if we closed every dangerous one, we’d have to shut down the whole city grid.
At this point, has anyone considered putting warning signs at Lubbock intersections that just say, “Proceed at your own emotional risk”?
https://www.kcbd.com/2025/11/30/lubbock-police-investigating-intentional-collision-34th-university/
