A 9-year-old boy suffered significant injuries yesterday after a white Ford Mustang struck him while he was crossing Yulupa Avenue near Village Elementary School in Santa Rosa. The collision happened around 8:30 PM on the 900 block of Yulupa Avenue, and the boy was taken by ambulance to a regional trauma center.
According to the Santa Rosa Police, a 41-year-old Santa Rosa man was driving the Mustang south on Yulupa Avenue when it collided with the child crossing the street. The department said the driver remained on scene and cooperated with investigators, and that Santa Rosa Police Department accident investigators and field evidence technicians responded to the scene. Police received numerous 911 calls reporting the crash. As reported by KSRO, the collision unfolded as daylight was fading in the residential neighborhood surrounding the school.
Traffic Collision Investigation Involving Child Pedestrian
— Santa Rosa Police (@SantaRosaPolice) August 19, 2026
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Crosswalk and Speed Still Under Review
Investigators believe the boy was in a marked crosswalk when he was struck, per the police department's release, though the investigation remains ongoing. Officers are still working to determine the Mustang's speed at the time of the crash and are investigating whether the crosswalk's flashing lights were activated before the boy stepped into the street. Per preliminary findings, alcohol or drugs do not appear to have been a factor in the collision, though the department cautioned that all information released so far is preliminary and may change as additional facts are developed.
The 900 block of Yulupa Avenue sits directly in front of Village Elementary School, part of the Rincon Valley Union School District, which serves primary-grade students living in the surrounding neighborhood, according to district records. That proximity is central to why child foot traffic is common along this stretch of road, particularly around school arrival and dismissal times.
A Corridor Already Flagged for Safety Fixes
The stretch of Yulupa Avenue between Bennett Valley Road and Tachevah Drive was among 29 street segments citywide where the Santa Rosa City Council approved lowering speed limits by 5 mph, as reported by CBS News. The change came under the city's Vision Zero initiative, which traffic engineers designed to target segments carrying elevated safety risk. Santa Rosa formally adopted the Sonoma County Vision Zero Action Plan in 2022, committing the city to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries on its streets by 2030, after total annual crashes had already dropped from 870 in 2017 to 326 in 2021.
Under California Vehicle Code Section 21950, drivers are required to yield the right-of-way to pedestrians crossing within marked or unmarked crosswalks, slow down, and exercise due care for pedestrian safety, according to legal reference site Shouse Law Group. That same code section also bars pedestrians from suddenly leaving a curb or place of safety and stepping into the path of a vehicle too close to stop safely, a factor investigators typically weigh alongside vehicle speed and stopping distance when assessing right-of-way in cases like this one. Statewide, pedestrian collisions account for roughly 22 percent of all traffic fatalities, according to California DMV data.
Lead Investigator Is the Department's Top DUI Officer
The case has been assigned to Accident Investigator Anthony Matteri, whom Mothers Against Drunk Driving recognized as the Santa Rosa Police Department's top DUI enforcement officer in 2025 after he made 141 DUI arrests, according to the City of Santa Rosa. That total accounted for nearly a quarter of the department's 614 DUI arrests that year. Anyone who witnessed the collision or has additional information is encouraged to contact Matteri at [email protected]. Media inquiries may be directed to Sgt. Patricia Seffens, the department's public information officer, at [email protected] or 707-543-3634. The case has been logged under Santa Rosa Police Department case number 26-8962, and the investigation is ongoing.
Part of a Broader Pattern in Santa Rosa
This is not the first crosswalk-area collision Santa Rosa police have investigated this year. In May, officers investigated a case in which a driver struck a man in a wheelchair crossing W. College Avenue at Clover Drive, an incident in which automated license plate readers helped trace the vehicle after it fled. That same month, the department also conducted targeted traffic enforcement sweeps at local school campuses, including Village Elementary, issuing 85 citations for unsafe driving practices during school commute hours. Hoodline previously covered a hit-and-run crosswalk injury case in Santa Rosa earlier this year that required similarly extensive investigator review.
