On October 23, 55-year-old Elvis Presley was sleeping on a sidewalk on Third Street near Bryant when he was run over and killed by a 28-year-old woman pulling her car out of a garage. Contrary to media reports, police confirmed that the woman was driving forward, not backing out, onto the sidewalk.
Presley's death was ruled an "accident," and the woman will face no charges nor receive a citation, said SFPD spokesperson Albie Esparza. Her name will not be released, as she is not considered a suspect, he said.
The case seems yet another affirmation of the status quo: Killing another person is just fine, as long as it's done with a motor vehicle, the driver isn't intoxicated, and claims it was an accident.
"If you are behind the wheel of a two-ton vehicle, it IS your responsibility to make sure your path is clear," wrote Streetsblog reader Tami in an email. "In a densely populated city it is reasonable to expect for a dog, child or person to be in your path. It is insufficient to say, 'I didn't see him.'"
"Nobody deserves to die that way," said Walk SF Executive Director Elizabeth Stampe. "I'd want to know more about what happened, and how on earth the driver didn't notice that her car was actually running over someone."
