Woman Drives Through Crowd Of Protesters In Santa Rosa: Police

SANTA ROSA, CA — A woman who drove her SUV through a crowd of protesters Saturday night in Santa Rosa told police her car was vandalized and she was assaulted, while protesters, including an organizer of the Black Lives Matter demonstration, tell a different story.

The woman called police around 9:20 p.m. to report the incident; at the same time, several demonstrators involved in the "Santa Rosa 24 Hour Protest for Peace and Justice" on Sonoma Avenue also called police to report that a car had just driven recklessly through a crowd of protesters gathered near the Santa Rosa Police Department on Sonoma Avenue, police said.

The callers told dispatchers that some protesters may have been hit by the vehicle, described as a white SUV.

Officers soon determined the woman who called to report the assault and vandalism was the same one callers had phoned police to complain about.

She had pulled over not far from the police station to call police.

She told police she worked as a nurse at a local hospital and had just gotten off her shift. She told police she was not aware of the planned protest, and that it was dark as she drove westbound on Sonoma Avenue.

"She told officers that she suddenly saw flashlights shining at her and came upon a large crowd of people," Santa Rosa police Sgt. Summer Gloeckner said. "She stated that she pulled over as far to the right of the roadway as she could, thinking the crowd would let her through."

She told officers that as she tried to continue westbound on Sonoma Avenue, she was stopped by protesters who blocked her from moving.

"At one point someone threw a skateboard and a bicycle at her vehicle and broke her windshield," Gloeckner said.

The driver told officers she was scared by the "swarm" of people blocking the street and her car as she tried to continue westbound out of the crowd.

"She said she did not try to hit anyone, she just wanted to leave and escape the crowd," Gloeckner said.

An organizer of the demonstration, Alea Sanders, told members of the media she wants the driver arrested. She recalled seeing things flying through the air and people screaming as a white SUV suddenly sped through the crowd.

"I mean it was traumatic. I mean there were children in the crowd," Sanders told ABC7.

Sanders told the news station she knows of at least two people who suffered minor injuries as they dove to avoid being hit by the car.

"First and foremost, I want justice served," Sanders told ABC7. "I want her arrested. I want her charged with attempted murder because that's what that was."

Demonstrators told police damages to the car were a reaction after the SUV sped through their group, the news station reported.

According to police, the SUV driver said she did not know has fast she drove as she tried to get away from the crowd.

When she pulled over farther down the road where it was clear, a man on a bicycle who'd followed her approached her car and punched her in the face, she told police.

She described the person who punched her as a bald white man in his 20s who had tattoos on his face and arms, and told police that a bystander tried to chase her attacker but he was able to ride away on his bicycle.

Demonstrators, on the other hand, told officers they believed the woman intentionally drove through the crowd.

"There was some discrepancy as to how fast the vehicle was driving," Gloeckner said.

Several protesters provided video footage.

"The videos show the protesters taking over all lanes of traffic on Sonoma Avenue, heading eastbound," Gloeckner said. "It also showed it was dark outside."

It was clear in the videos that as a car approached the crowd, several people yelled profanities, Gloeckner said.

"At one point, protesters surround the vehicle and the vehicle is struck by several unknown objects and a skateboard," Gloeckner said.

The videos showed the vehicle's path was blocked by protesters and that the driver tried to maneuver her way out of the crowd until her path was clear, the sergeant said.

"There is no indication from the videos that the driver was trying to run over protesters on purpose," Gloeckner said."The videos do show the driver trying to accelerate somewhat away from the crowd."

As of Sunday afternoon, no one had contacted the police department to say they were hit by the SUV, nor had the suspect who assaulted the driver been apprehended, Santa Rosa police said.

The investigation was continuing and the name of the driver was not being released, police said Sunday.

Anyone with information about the incident involving the SUV or about the suspect in the assault reported by the driver is encouraged to call SRPD's non-emergency line at 707-528-5222.