A 41-year-old man died early Friday after a driver struck him on Highway 18 in Apple Valley and fled without stopping, leaving investigators searching for a vehicle about three days later. Cassidy Kelsay was killed in the collision, which happened in the 19800 block of Highway 18, just west of Rancherias Road, according to coroner's records.
The crash occurred around 1 a.m. Friday, as reported by the Victorville Daily Press, which cited San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department records confirming the man's death. The driver did not stop to render aid or contact authorities, leaving Kelsay at the scene before deputies arrived.
The Apple Valley Police Department / Sheriff's Station is handling the search for the vehicle and its driver, according to a Sheriff's Department post. MAIT units are typically assigned to fatal and hit-and-run cases that require detailed reconstruction work, including 3D scanning and physical evidence analysis. It remains unclear whether investigators have recovered dashcam or surveillance footage from the commercial stretches of Highway 18 near Rancherias Road that could help identify the vehicle responsible.
A Recent Brush With the Law
Kelsay was identified by authorities as a transient living in the Apple Valley area, and he had a documented run-in with law enforcement just three weeks before his death. On August 5, Apple Valley sheriff's deputies arrested him on suspicion of brandishing a weapon during an alleged robbery at a Dollar Tree store on Bear Valley Road, according to Victor Valley News.
If the driver who struck Kelsay is eventually located, they could face serious felony charges. Under California Vehicle Code Section 20001(b)(2), fleeing the scene of a crash that causes death or serious injury carries a potential sentence of two, three, or four years in state prison, or up to a year in county jail, along with fines ranging from $1,000 to $10,000, per legal guidance published by Justia Law. State law requires drivers involved in fatal collisions to stop immediately, render aid, and notify police, regardless of who caused the crash.
A Dangerous Stretch of Highway
Friday's crash adds to a troubling pattern along Highway 18 in Apple Valley, a corridor that has seen repeated fatal collisions in recent years. In a wrong-way crash near Mandan Road in March, a driver traveling the wrong direction caused a five-vehicle pileup that killed a 74-year-old motorist and sent two others to the hospital, forcing a multi-hour closure of eastbound lanes. Just days before Kelsay's death, a tanker truck collision in Lucerne Valley sent a BMW driver to the hospital by air.
Pedestrian deaths along the same highway have also drawn scrutiny before. In November 2023, pedestrian Charlie Zamora was killed in a hit-and-run in Apple Valley, and that same month, 12-year-old Journee Buchanan-Williams was struck and killed while crossing at the intersection of Highway 18 and Apple Valley Road.
County Ranks High for Hit-and-Runs
The pattern reflects broader countywide traffic-safety concerns.
Hit-and-run collisions and pedestrian safety remain concerns in San Bernardino County. A separate discussion by Vaziri Law addressed motor vehicle fatalities and traffic-safety factors in the region.
Regional planners have taken notice of the corridor's risks. The corridor's pedestrian and bicyclist safety has been part of that broader planning attention. No arrests have been announced in Kelsay's death, and the investigation remains active.
