A year after San Leandro Police Chief Angela Averiett was accused of swiping the side of another car in the East Bay then driving off, she now faces misdemeanor charges and has been put on administrative leave.
San Leandro’s police chief, Angela Averiett, is now on administrative leave after being charged with misdemeanor hit-and-run Tuesday, stemming from an incident in Dublin last May, which was initially reported by ABC 7’s Dan Noyes and covered by SFist in April.
According to KTVU, Averiett denies the allegations, saying she was unaware she swiped another car. She told investigators with the California Highway Patrol she was experiencing chest pains at the time, which stopped after she exited the road.
"I want to be clear that I did not knowingly leave the scene of a collision," she said at a press conference Wednesday.
As SFist reported last month, driver Daffani Ryan told Noyes that someone in an unmarked Jeep with flashing police lights swiped her car on eastbound I-580. The side mirrors from each car reportedly smacked each other, creating a shotgun-like banging sound. Ryan said the other driver then turned the police lights off and quickly exited the highway.
Once Ryan found out the alleged driver was Averiett, she reportedly tried to file a police report but was met with resistance from then commander Lt. Antwinette Turner, who is now Deputy Chief of BART Police, in charge of the Progressive Policing and Community Engagement Bureau. Turner allegedly offered to fix the damage on Ryan’s car if she refrained from filing the police report.
Per ABC 7, the damage on both mirrors was consistent with Ryan’s story. Averiett repeatedly declined to speak to the press about the allegations prior to being charged, claiming she didn’t hear the loud bang.
"Given the minimal nature of the reported damage — a small scratch on the other vehicle’s side mirror — I had no indication at the time that any contact may have occurred," Averiett told the press Wednesday.
Initially, CHP took Averiett at her word that she "had no knowledge of the reported hit-and-run” and decided not to file charges, but the ongoing media coverage likely prompted the agency to give the case another look.
Per KTVU, Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson downplayed the misdemeanor charges, saying the case wasn’t exactly "the crime of the century."
Assistant Chief Luis Torres is reportedly serving as acting chief in Averiett’s place. Averiett could face up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine if convicted.
Previously: Woman Says San Leandro Police Chief Clipped Her Car on I-580 and Fled, Was Asked Not to Report It
Image: San Leandro Police Department/Facebook
