Police say 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan avoided citation in car crash due to officer's discretion
San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan was originally reported to have not been at fault in his car crash earlier this month, but quickly told reporters he had caused the crash because he was reaching for his dropped cell phone.
That left an awkward question: If Shanahan was indeed at fault for the crash, why wasn’t he cited by police in the aftermath of the crash?
A report from ESPN provided the answer on Thursday, with Palo Alto Police saying via statement that the citation decision came down to officer discretion and denying it was due to any sort of favoritism for the local NFL teams’ head coach. They also said the other driver initially being labeled at fault in their database was due to an error.
From ESPN:
In a statement to ESPN, a police spokesperson said the attribution of fault to the other driver was the result of “a clerical error.” And the responding officer exercised his discretion when determining whether to cite Shanahan.
“It is not uncommon for officers to elect to not issue a citation to either party involved in a collision,” the spokesperson said. “Neither party in this situation was provided preferential treatment.”
The two-car crash left Shanahan with a broken nose, three broken ribs, a broken hand, a severe concussion and a gash near his eye that needed 40 stitches. The other driver, a 21-year-old woman, reportedly avoided injury.
Shanahan took full responsibility for the crash on Tuesday and explained how it happened:
“I hit her … I was going 20 miles an hour. I was not on my phone, but I dropped my phone and it was stuck in my seats,” he said, according to ESPN. “It’s on my lap, and it slid off. And I went down to look for it and took my eyes off the road for two seconds. And as I was coming up, the airbags hit me in my face, and they broke my nose. And then they said the visor really gashed me.”
The injuries have sidelined Shanahan for much of training camp, primarily due to his lingering concussion symptoms. Assistant head coach Chris Foerster is taking on some of Shanahan’s duties until he can make a full return, aided by a group effort from defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak and special teams coordinator Brant Boyer.
Niners general manager John Lynch has said he expects Shanahan to be recovered in time for the team’s season-opener against the Los Angeles Rams in Australia on Sept. 10.
