Bay Area news anchor Frank Somerville arrested on suspicion of DUI after Oakland crash

Bay Area news anchor Frank Somerville has been arrested for suspicion of driving under the influence following a crash Thursday night, the Oakland Police Department said.

Somerville has been on leave from his post at KTVU since September. KRON4 first reported the arrest.

Somerville was involved in a traffic collision near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Broadway Street just after 7:45 p.m., according to OPD. Witnesses reportedly told officers that one of the drivers involved in the collision collided with another driver's vehicle from behind, then proceeded to drive through the intersection, pushing the second driver's vehicle into a pole.

In its preliminary investigation, OPD determined that the first driver was driving under the influence. The driver was transported to a local hospital for treatment and booked at Santa Rita Jail, OPD said. The second driver was uninjured.

Somerville and KTVU did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Those with information are asked to contact the Oakland Police Department Traffic Investigation Unit at 510-777-8570.

Somerville went off the air in June after noticeably slurring during a live news broadcast. Just months after returning to KTVU, Somerville was again suspended after reportedly sparring with the station's producers over coverage of the Gabby Petito investigation. The news anchor, who has a Black daughter, had wanted to append a tagline on how media coverage of missing people tends to focus on white women, while missing people of color receive far less media attention.

In November, Somerville told the East Bay Times he was "never going to anchor" at the station again.