A pedestrian was killed in an early-morning vehicle crash near the intersection of Maricopa Avenue and 23rd Street in Richmond on Thursday. The victim suffered severe trauma from the collision and was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.
Richmond Police Department officers arrived at the crash scene and found the vehicle driver still there, according to KRON4. The department's traffic unit has taken over the investigation, the station reports.
A Previous Fatal Crash on 23rd Street
On Aug. 23, 81-year-old Richmond resident Rafael Gutierrez Delgado was struck and killed while crossing 23rd Street at Hellings Avenue, around 8:30 p.m. The vehicle involved fled the scene and was later found abandoned in Richmond two days afterward, according to abc7news.com, with an arrest following a weeklong investigation.
A City Grappling With Rising Collision Numbers
The fatal crash lands amid a broader climb in traffic incidents across Richmond. The city recorded 547 reported collisions from January through June of this year, according to an analysis by the Grandview Independent, and collisions rose five percent from June to July, climbing from 153 to 161. Reported collisions citywide have also grown steadily in recent years, from 916 in 2022 to 1,110 in 2025.
Pedestrians make up a disproportionate share of the deadliest crashes in Richmond. Of 20 fatal collisions recorded by the California Highway Patrol's statewide database from January 2024 through the first quarter of this year, seven involved a pedestrian, the outlet's analysis found. Richmond police also logged 184 misdemeanor traffic citations in July alone, mostly for speeding and running stop signs and stoplights.
Hit-and-Runs on the Rise
Hit-and-run collisions accounted for about 48 percent of Richmond's reported collisions in 2025, up from 39 percent in 2017, per the Grandview Independent's review of city data. DUI arrests also climbed from 18 in June to 20 in July, and all four DUI-related collisions that month resulted in significant injuries.
No further details about the victim's identity or the circumstances leading up to Thursday's crash have been released. The Richmond Police Department's traffic investigators continue to work the case.
