A 15-year-old Paso Robles boy died after being ejected from a car that crashed into a tree on a rural road near Templeton Sunday night, and two other teenagers, including the 18-year-old driver, were taken to the hospital with injuries. Bentley Schmitz was riding in the rear seat when the vehicle left the roadway on El Pomar Drive west of Vaquero Road.
According to A-Town Daily News, California Highway Patrol officers responded to the solo-vehicle crash at approximately 9:59 p.m., after a white 2007 Toyota Camry driven by 18-year-old Jonathan Sanchez left the north roadway edge for unknown reasons while heading westbound. The vehicle struck a tree, and Schmitz, who was seated in the rear, was ejected and died at the scene from his injuries, CHP reported.
Second Teen Passenger Identified
A second 15-year-old passenger in the car was also hurt and transported to Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center for treatment, along with Sanchez. That passenger was identified in reports only as another 15-year-old Paso Robles resident, according to the Paso Robles Daily News. Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center in San Luis Obispo was the hospital where the injured teens were taken; Hoodline reported on a fatal Highway 46 crash in June.
CHP officers said alcohol and drugs were not suspected to have been factors in the crash. The collision remains under investigation by the California Highway Patrol's Templeton Area office, which routinely handles major rural highway collisions across North County.
Driver's Age Meant No Passenger Restrictions
Some readers may wonder whether Sanchez, as a teenage driver carrying two 15-year-old passengers, was violating California's graduated licensing rules. He was not. Under California Vehicle Code Section 12814.6, provisional license restrictions barring newly licensed drivers from carrying passengers under 20 automatically expire once a driver turns 18, according to FindLaw. That means Sanchez, at 18, was legally permitted to transport minor passengers without adult supervision, even though the same restriction would have applied to a 16- or 17-year-old driver in his position.
School Offers Counseling as Grief Spreads
In a letter sent to families on Monday morning, September 14, 2026, Paso Robles High School Principal Mike Susank confirmed Schmitz's death to students and announced that crisis counseling services would be made available on campus, the Paso Robles Daily News reported. The notice was intended to support students grieving the loss of their classmate.
A Road With a History of Curve Crashes
The stretch of El Pomar Drive where the crash occurred has drawn safety attention before. San Luis Obispo County's Department of Public Works selected the intersection of El Pomar Drive and Vaquero Road back in May 2018 for installation of federally funded dynamic speed feedback signs meant to warn drivers of advisory speeds on curves, part of a $286,471 countywide project, according to the County of San Luis Obispo. The project focused on warning drivers about advisory speeds on curves.
In June 2025, CHP responded to another major single-vehicle injury crash on El Pomar Drive east of Vaquero Road, in which a motorcycle rider lost control on a curve and was ejected, per KPRL News. The rural road includes curves where crashes have occurred.
The Grim Math of Ejection
Being thrown from a vehicle during a crash is dangerous. Federal projections estimated 39,345 total U.S. traffic fatalities in 2024.
CHP's Templeton Area office continues to investigate what caused the Camry to leave the roadway. The agency has not released further details on the cause of the crash as the inquiry proceeds.
