Sideshow leads to head-on collision

A sideshow Saturday night in Fairfield eventually led to a head-on collision with a female passenger in one of the vehicles suffering major injuries, Fairfield police reported.

Officers, working with neighboring agencies to deter a large group participating in sideshow activities throughout Solano County, responded by moving large groups of vehicles out of parking lots and encouraging them to get back on the freeway, according to a police department post on social media. (A sideshow is an informal demonstration of automotive stunts often held in vacant lots and public intersections, most often in the East Bay region, where the gatherings first originated in the 1980s.)

However, the group then regrouped in Vacaville before driving out to county jurisdiction southeast of Vacaville and headed back toward Fairfield on Vanden Road.

Around 10:24 p.m., Christian Placencia, 23, of Pittsburg, passed unsafely on Vanden Road near One Lake Drive in Fairfield and struck an unrelated vehicle head-on at high speed, requiring the roadway to be shut down in both directions for several hours, according to the post.

The collision resulted in major injuries to the female passenger in Palencia’s vehicle, requiring extraction by Fairfield Fire Department firefighters.

Lt. Jausiah Jacobsen, the public information officer for the Fairfield Police Department, declined to identify her.

Placencia and the victim whom he struck were taken to a local trauma hospital with minor injuries. Placencia, his passenger, and the victim are expected to make a full recovery, Jacobsen noted Monday.

Despite the collision, vehicles in the sideshow group continued to drive onto Walters toward Highway 12 through Suisun.

Officers responded, gathering on Highway 12 to keep “a rather large group moving out of town,” according to the post. At 10:30 p.m. a group of several hundred people shut down Pennsylvania and Highway 12.

The California Highway Patrol’s Golden Gate Division Air Operations then responded in support, and Fairfield officers dispersed the crowd, which reportedly threw objects and shined a laser at officers.

According to the press release, “the group continued onto westbound Interstate 80 out of Fairfield to participate in additional sideshow activities around the Bay Area.”

“Sideshows have no place in our community, and Fairfield Police Department will continue to work with Bay Area Law Enforcement to deter and shut down such events,” according to the post. “Our thoughts are with the victims affected by last night’s senseless acts and disregard for human life.”

Jacobsen confirmed that Placencia likely will face “numerous charges,” including a felony for reckless driving causing injury, adding that the collision is still under investigation.

Anyone with information related to the sideshow activity is asked to contact Fairfield Police Department, telephone (707) 4287300.