Redacted report gives little new info on fatal crash involving Placer CEO Todd Leopold
The Rocklin Police Department has released a heavily redacted copy of the accident report for a deadly pedestrian crash in which recently fired Placer County CEO Todd Leopold hit a teenager.
The Police Department sent the report to The Sacramento Bee this week in response to a Public Records Act request and letters from The Bee’s attorneys.
The document gives little new information about the fatal accident.
Leopold acknowledged in a written statement last month that he was behind the wheel of the vehicle that struck and killed 18-year-old Anthony Williams, an Inderkum High School senior walking on Lone Tree Boulevard, the evening of March 19.
His statement came two days after the Rocklin Police Department announced on May 11 that it had completed its investigation and determined the driver not to be at fault.
The police report obtained by The Bee reveals Leopold was driving alone in a purple 2018 Jeep Wrangler, which was impounded with front-end damage described as minor. Leopold is the vehicle’s registered owner.
The document also shows police interviewed at least six witnesses, whose identities are redacted.
Key sections of the report – including ones marked “primary collision factor,” “reason for stop” and remarks made by Leopold to responding officers – were fully redacted.
The report shows that Leopold was not driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. The redacted document does not specify whether Leopold was using a cellphone while driving.
Police did not issue Leopold a traffic citation, according to the report.
The report also said there were no apparent “other associated factors” aside from the redacted primary cause. Such factors would include items like vision obscurement, inattention or stop-and-go traffic.
Leopold’s speed at the time of the crash is not shown in the report. The speed limit on the involved stretch of Lonetree Boulevard is 40 mph.
The document shows that Williams at the time of the collision was in the roadway, as Police Department officials have said previously. The roadway includes the shoulder, according to the police report.
The involved stretch of Lonetree Boulevard has street lights but was dark, according to the report. The crash happened around 8:30 p.m. near the Blue Oaks Town Center shopping area.
The deadly traffic incident drew intense public interest after a community advocacy group revealed Leopold to be the driver. Williams’ family, loved ones and other community members began calling for accountability and further transparency.
The Placer County Board of Supervisors last week voted to give Leopold his 30-day notice of termination for a matter officials said was unrelated to the deadly crash — a workplace harassment complaint filed May 25 by a county employee. The top county executive had been placed on paid administrative leave a week before his firing.
The Placer County District Attorney’s Office is reviewing the Police Department’s findings and has said it will decide whether any criminal charges for Leopold are necessary.
The D.A.’s review remains ongoing with no estimated timeline given for its completion. The redacted police accident report provided to The Bee indicates the Police Department first routed the paperwork to the DA on April 6.
Rocklin’s city attorney, Sheri Chapman, provided the police report Thursday in response to a Public Records Act request by The Bee.
Chapman in an accompanying letter to The Bee’s attorneys said the report’s redactions are due to police reports remaining “confidential … except as to ‘proper persons,’” citing the vehicle code and prior court decisions. Rocklin police have refused The Bee’s repeated request for the police report on similar grounds.
“Proper persons” in vehicle collisions include involved parties, as well as family members of deceased victims.
A cousin of Williams told The Bee last month he had received a copy of the full police report, but was advised by his attorney not to release it, as the family presumably prepares to file a wrongful death lawsuit.
“It will eventually come to light,” the cousin, Charles Carpenter, said at the time. “Right now, we’re just trying to get this case started.”
This story was originally published June 10, 2022 at 1:32 PM.
