UPDATE: Driver, 15, arrested after several teens ejected, one killed, in Redding stolen vehicle crash
UPDATED: Monday, Aug. 30, 3:10 p.m. With details regarding suspect’s arrest.
Originally Published: Sunday, Aug. 29, 5:06 p.m.
REDDING, Calif., — Authorities this afternoon announced the warrant-related arrest of a fifteen-year-old male they say was driving a stolen vehicle that was involved in a deadly, two-vehicle crash in Redding early Sunday morning, Aug. 29. Three boys, ages fifteen and sixteen, along with two girls, both fifteen, were in the stolen car when the high-speed crash occurred, killing one of the boys and ejecting “several” of the other teens. All four surviving juveniles, including the driver who remained hospitalized until his arrest this afternoon, were hospitalized after the accident with moderate to major injuries.
It has since been learned that the driver, whose name has not been released due to his age, had just fled from City of Redding police officers moments before the fatal, rollover collision. However, when the young driver turned off the stolen vehicle’s headlights and fled at a high rate of speed, officers discontinued their pursuit, “out of an abundance of caution” and were no longer chasing the stolen sedan when the unlicensed driver ran a red light and plowed into another car at the intersection of Hilltop Drive and Cypress Avenue.
The force of the high-speed impact sent the stolen vehicle careening from the roadway where it overturned, ejecting several of the car’s young occupants, including the juvenile killed in the collision, according to officials.
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Sunday morning’s fatal incident began around 3 a.m., when an officer spotted a silver, 2017 Honda Accord that had been reported stolen on Aug. 27th. The Honda was being driven northbound on Churn Creek Road passing Cypress Avenue, Redding Police Sergeant Jeff Schmidt has since reported.
“The officer was able to catch up with the car near the intersection of Churn Creek Road and Mistletoe Lane and he attempted to conduct a traffic stop using his emergency lights,” Schmidt explained.
Refusing to yield to the officer’s lights and siren, the driver of the stolen Honda turned off the vehicle’s headlights and fled at a high rate of speed, traveling westbound on Mistletoe Lane from Churn Creek Road.
At that point, due to the vehicle’s high rate of speed and the fact the the vehicle was fleeing with no headlights, “the officer made the determination to not pursue the vehicle out of an abundance of caution and turned off his emergency lights,” Schmidt explained.
Officials who responded to Sunday’s early morning collision found a stolen Honda overturned in a Circle K parking lot, with vehicle parts and debris – along with the broken and bloody bodies of several of the ejected juveniles – scattered throughout the collision scene. Redding Police Department photo
“The officer observed the Honda fail to stop at the red light at the intersection of Mistletoe Lane and Hilltop Drive,” the Sergeant continued; saying, “It made a southbound turn on Hilltop Drive and continued at a high rate of speed without its headlights on.”
Due to the speeding vehicle’s high rate of speed, the first officer quickly lost sight of the Honda on Hilltop Drive, prompting the officer to advise other officers of the fleeing vehicle’s speed and direction of travel over the police radio.
No longer in pursuit or within eyesight of the speeding Honda, as the officer continued southbound on Hilltop Drive “he noticed the flash of the red-light cameras activating at the intersection of Hilltop Drive and Cypress Avenue,” Schmidt continued.
When he and other officers arrived at the intersection they found the stolen car had been involved in a high-speed traffic collision with another vehicle, since described as a black, 2021 Nissan Sentra.
As additional officers arrived at the scene, they found the Honda overturned and on its roof in a Circle K parking lot. The other sedan was found in the middle of the intersection, with vehicle parts and debris – along with the broken and bloody bodies of several of the ejected juveniles – scattered throughout the large collision scene.
One of the passengers, a fifteen-year-old boy, was pronounced dead at scene according to Schmidt; who said fifteen and sixteen-year-old males – one of whom was driving – sustained major injuries and were transported to a local hospital by ambulance. Two girls, both fifteen, were later located after fleeing the scene of the deadly crash. Redding Police Department photo
Responding firefighters, paramedics and other emergency personnel soon determined five juveniles, including three boys and two girls – all ages fifteen and sixteen, had been inside the stolen car at the time of the collision.
One of the passengers, a fifteen-year-old boy, was pronounced dead at scene, according to Schmidt; who said a pair of fifteen and sixteen-year-old males – one of whom was driving at the time of the collision – sustained major injuries and were transported to a local hospital by ambulance.
Officials also soon learned two fifteen-year-old girls had fled from the collision in the moments following the crash. One was quickly stopped and detained by a concerned citizen immediately after the collision and the other was tracked to her residence and located this morning after a citizen called 911 and reported having offered the teen a ride to her mother’s home. Both girls were subsequently treated at area hospitals for their minor to moderate injuries and both have since been released from the hospital to the care of their families.
The driver of the Nissan, a 42-year-old Redding woman sustained moderate injuries and was taken to the hospital by ambulance. Her current condition was not immediately available, but initial reports indicate that her injuries were not considered to be life-threatening at the time.
The driver of the other vehicle involved in Sunday’s deadly crash was hospitalized with moderate injuries, according to officials. Redding Police Department photo
The fifteen-year-old driver was later interviewed by officers at the hospital, where he admitted to being the driver of the stolen vehicle, fleeing from the officer, and driving recklessly just before the deadly crash.
Although the teen driver remained hospitalized overnight for treatment of his injuries, officers obtained an arrest warrant and took the boy into custody upon his release from the hospital, according to Redding Police Corporal Michael DiMatteo; who today announced that the teen was transported to Shasta County Juvenile Rehabilitation Facility where he was booked on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter, evading police causing injury or death, and possession of a stolen vehicle.
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Redding Police Department’s Traffic Unit and Detective Division are continuing to work in collaboration with the Shasta County District Attorney Office on this investigation and at the conclusion of their initial investigation the case will be forwarded to the Shasta County District Attorney’s Office.
Additionally, a School Resource Officer has been in contact with the local schools the juveniles attend and is coordinating resources with school administrators to ensure that any children or adults who need to speak with someone regarding the fatal collision have the opportunity to do so, according to Schmidt.
Anyone with information regarding this case is asked to call the Redding Police Department Traffic Unit at (530) 225-4200. Callers can remain anonymous.
Contact the writer: [email protected]
Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).
Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County-based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.
Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)
During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.
Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.
Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.
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