Sebastopol police: No fault in crash that killed woman crossing street in wheelchair

Nearly three months after a 79-year-old driver struck and fatally injured a 27-year-old woman in a motorized wheelchair in a Bodega Avenue crosswalk, Sebastopol police completed their investigation and found no grounds to arrest or cite the driver.

The impact of the Aug. 24 morning collision threw Julie Reibel, of Sebastopol, around 75 feet from where she was struck. Investigators found no skid marks and ultimately were unable to determine who had the right of way: Reibel or the driver.

“What it comes down to is a failure to yield on one side or the other,” said Police Lt. Greg DeVore. “Our investigation just did not give us enough evidence for us to file a charge.”

The death a week later of Reibel, an Analy High School and Santa Rosa Junior College graduate and a cheerful and determined woman with cerebral palsy, prompted a town hall meeting where residents expressed outrage and concern over pedestrian safety in Sebastopol. At the Sept. 12 meeting, organized by the City Council, residents shared stories of close calls with vehicles while walking on city streets.

“These kinds of accidents seem to be happening very frequently in our community,” Sebastopol Mayor Una Glass said at the meeting.

Reibel, a volunteer at Brook Haven Middle School close to her Sebastopol home on Gross Court, was headed south around 10:10 a.m. when she attempted to cross Bodega Avenue at Ragle Road, DeVore said. The driver was traveling east on Bodega Avenue when the silver Kia struck her, DeVore said. Speed was not a factor in the incident, he said.

DeVore said a driver must yield to a pedestrian traversing a crosswalk, but a pedestrian can't legally enter a crosswalk unless it's safe to do so.

The lieutenant would not say if the driver saw Reibel before his car struck her or if he had tried to use his brakes.

The crosswalk in the uncontrolled intersection extends north-south across Bodega Avenue on the western side of the intersection, and parallel white lines caution approaching drivers in each direction.

The Kia driver stopped immediately and cooperated with police during the investigation. His name is not being released because he was not arrested, DeVore said.

Sebastopol police have completed their investigation and will send the findings to the Sonoma County District Attorney's Office for review, DeVore said. Reibel's family declined comment on the police findings. The city of Sebastopol is studying the entire Bodega Avenue corridor and weighing public feedback on pedestrian safety, City Manager Larry McLaughlin said.

Traffic engineers are considering options to make the busy intersection safer including the installation of a median to slow traffic, McLaughlin said. A proposal will be brought to the City Council in early 2018, he said.

You can reach Staff Writer Nick Rahaim at 707-521-5203 or nick.rahaim@pressdemocrat.com.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Reibel was traveling south across Bodega Avenue when she was struck Aug. 24. Her intended destination is not clear. Sebastopol police are in the process of submitting a report on their findings to the District Attorney's Office. An earlier version of this story incorrectly described the direction Reibel was traveling and the status of the police report.