Benicia officer in patrol car strikes, kills pedestrian

An onduty Benicia police officer struck and killed a pedestrian with his patrol car early Wednesday morning, authorities said.

The officer was driving down the 1900 block of East Second Street around 2 a. m. when he hit a man who later died at the scene, the Benicia police said in a statement.

Police declined to name the officer, but said he has been placed on administrative leave.

The person who was killed was identified only as a 30to 40yearold man. The Solano County coroner’s office said the victim’s family has not yet been found or notified. An autopsy will be performed Thursday.

The officer was not responding to a service call when he struck the victim and it’s unclear how fast he was traveling when the pedestrian was hit, police said.

The California Highway Patrol has taken over the investigation of the collision, according to CHP spokesman Jathan Castaneda.

CHP traffic investigators will likely create a detailed diagram of the scene to map out how the pedestrian death occurred, Castaneda said.

The Benicia Police Department police said that it has ceded the investigation to the CHP and the Solano County District Attorney’s Office and that its officers will have no role in the probe.

“The Benicia Police Department itself is not investigating any part of the collision and is not investigating its own officer,” a spokeswoman for the department said Wednesday.

Interim Benicia Police Chief Mike Greene called it a “tragic incident for all involved.”

“Our deepest condolences go out to the victim’s family and loved ones,” Greene said.