No charges in crash that killed Santa Rosa pedestrian

A 95-year-old Santa Rosa man at the center of a dramatic downtown crash last year that killed a pedestrian will not face criminal charges, Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch said Friday.

David Nelson ran a red left-turn arrow at the intersection of Third and B streets, colliding with an SUV that rolled onto Ruth Tapian, 73, also of Santa Rosa, who was standing on the sidewalk. She was killed instantly.

Police conducted a nearly two-month investigation, using surveillance footage with stoplight sequencing data kept by the city’s traffic engineers to determine which of the drivers had the right of way.

They presented findings to prosecutors who reviewed the evidence and determined the crash was an accident. Ravitch said she met with Tapian’s family members, who supported her decision not to pursue charges. The family’s lawyer could not immediately be reached for comment Friday.

“We believe the decision is in the interest of justice,” Ravitch said.

Nelson’s lawyer, Chris Andrian, agreed, saying his client was guilty of human error but no crime. Nelson, a former San Francisco Chronicle copy boy and reporter, no longer drives and is facing a civil lawsuit from Tapian’s heirs, Andrian said.

“We are imperfect. We make mistakes,” Andrian said. “That’s why we have insurance.”

Santa Rosa police agreed it was the right decision. They did not recommend charges and remained neutral in saying misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence could apply in the case.

Sgt. Ryan Corcoran, who runs the traffic unit that investigated the crash, said the facts pointed to an accident without contributing factors.

Corcoran said their report might have been different had there been other factors that played into the crash - such as speeding, cellphone use or intoxication. The officer found none of those was a factor. He also didn’t find any indication that age played a role.

“It wasn’t a malicious act, he wasn’t in a hurry, he wasn’t trying to run the red light,” Corcoran said. “It was more a case of inattention or confusion; he maybe didn’t realize the light was red.”

Also, Nelson told police in an initial interview after the crash that “he was never going to drive again,” Corcoran sad.

The Department of Motor Vehicles suspended Nelson’s license within about a month of the collision, and at a September DMV hearing Nelson voluntarily relinquished his license, Corcoran said.

“There were multiple factors in this case that led it (not filing charges) to be a good decision,” Corcoran said.

“And he gave up his license. ?He’s not going to be out driving again.”

A family attorney said Tapian was on her way to Wells Fargo Bank on B Street on Jan. 20 when she was killed. It appeared she was waiting for the light to turn so she could cross the street.

Daniel Borbely, 72, was heading east on Third Street when his Ford Explorer was struck by a Volvo wagon driven by Nelson that was coming from the opposite direction and making a left turn onto B Street, police said.

Borbely told The Press Democrat he had the green light when he entered the intersection. Nelson thought he had the green arrow, Andrian said.

Nelson declined previous requests to be interviewed about the crash.

You can reach Staff Writer Paul Payne at 568-5312 or paul.payne@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @ppayne.