A Vallejo traffic stop turned into a deadly chase early Saturday morning, killing one person and sending five others to the hospital.
The incident began when Vallejo police tried to stop a gray Mercedes near Sonoma Boulevard and Lemon Street for an alleged traffic violation around 12:54 a.m. on July 6. The driver fled, leading police on a roughly two-mile chase, according to dispatch audio.
The pursuit ended less than 90 seconds later when the Mercedes, traveling at roughly 75 mph, collided with a blue Subaru Outback near the intersection of Tennesse Street and Sonoma Boulevard. The impact killed a passenger in the Mercedes and caused the Subaru to burst into flames.
Vallejo police and fire personnel rendered medical aid to the occupants of the two vehicles, according to a statement released by Vallejo police Saturday afternoon. Officers found at least one firearm in the Mercedes, according to dispatch audio. Five people were transported to local hospitals.
The body of the man who was killed remained under a yellow tarp more than five hours later, according to witness statements and photographs posted to social media. A traffic light left dangling after the collision had been removed as of late Saturday afternoon.
Officials have not released the name of the man who was killed. The Solano County Major Crimes Task Force, led by the District Attorney’s Office, responded to the scene and has taken over the investigation.
In the past year, three people have been killed as individuals fled Vallejo police, and Vallejo police pursuits have led to multiple collisions, Open Vallejo research shows. Nationwide, at least 1,377 people died in police chases in 2020 and 2021, according to an investigation published this February by the San Francisco Chronicle.
