Danville Mourns Doctor Shot While Off-Roading With Son

SIERRA COUNTY, CA — A Danville doctor was fatally shot Friday while off-roading with his son in a rural part of Sierra County, according to officials and community members. His son was missing for a day after escaping from the shooter.

The man killed in the attack has been identified as Dr. Ari Gershman, a family man who loved the outdoors and cycling, and "was willing to drop anything for his friends and family," according to a GoFundMe online fundraiser page set up to support his family. Donors had contributed $300,000 as of Monday evening to help cover expenses such as funeral costs and his wife's chemotherapy treatments.

"He was witty and wise," loved ones wrote on GoFundMe. "He died doing what he loved with his son in an area he had hoped to retire in one day."

Gershman's son was found safe after hiding alone in the Tahoe National Forest for more than 30 hours, according to the GoFundMe page. The Sierra County Sheriff's Office said it made an arrest in the case, but had not released any further details as of Monday morning.

Around 4 p.m. Friday, deputies learned two people had been shot and were being taken away from the scene by a private car the sheriff's office said. They were airlifted to the hospital and treated for injuries that were not life-threatening.

Deputies soon learned a third victim — Gershman — was fatally shot.

Deputies and officers from multiple law enforcement agencies began searching for his son and found him Saturday in good health, uninjured, the sheriff's office said.

Law enforcement officers found a man believed to be the shooter driving in an off-highway vehicle, shortly after Gershman's son was located. They tried to stop him, but the man sped off on Saddleback Road toward Downieville, the sheriff's office said.

He was stopped and arrested on Saddleback, about a mile north of Highway 49, the sheriff's office said.

The sheriff's office said Sunday that it anticipates releasing more information in the days to come.

Gershman was remembred by GoFundMe donors as "a valued colleague and a wonderful man" — the kind of man who would give rides to carless friends in his college days and spend his weekends sharing medical advice with a friend whose father was fighting COVID-19.

"This is the kind of family that you wish were your neighbors," wrote one.

"Heaven gained an angel, but we lost an incredible person," said another.

Donate to The Gershman Family Fund here on GoFundMe.

The man was arrested about a mile north of this intersection:

GoFundMe is a Patch promotional partner.