Crime & Safety
Petaluma Woman Arrested in Fatal Hit-and-Run Case
June Humphrey of Petaluma has been arrested in the hit-and-run death of 70-year-old Rohnert Park resident Linda Bartizal.
PETALUMA, CA -- Police have identified an elderly woman who was struck by a hit-and-run driver in Petaluma last weekend as a Rohnert Park resident, and have also arrested the driver who allegedly struck her.
On Feb. 14, 70-year-old Rohnert Park resident Linda Bartizal was identified as the pedestrian who was critically injured in a collision on Saturday, Feb. 11 on South McDowell Blvd. at Caulfield Lane in Petaluma.
Petaluma police also said on Feb. 13, Bartizal succumbed to the injuries she sustained from the collision and died during the night. Bartizal had sustained numerous injuries, which included a severed spinal cord, numerous broken ribs on her right side, a punctured lung and several fractures to her pelvis.
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The Petaluma Police Department has continued to investigate this collision since it occurred. While there were no witnesses to the collision that could provide a license plate, there was enough of a description that about 30 minutes after the collision occurred, a Petaluma police officer located a Chrysler van matching the description.
The van was located at the parking lot of Rooster Run Golf Course which is on East Washington Street, near Petaluma's east city limits. The front of the van had damage near the passenger’s side headlight and passenger’s side windshield, police say, and the damage to the front driver’s side hood and headlight area also contained physical evidence.
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After finding that the van was registered to June Humphrey of Petaluma, police launched a search.
On the morning of Feb. 13, the Petaluma Traffic Unit received a phone call from a Santa Rosa-based attorney who said he was representing Humphrey and that she would be turning herself in. After no-showing that day, Humphrey eventually turned herself in at 9:30 am on Tuesday, Feb. 14 and was booked into Sonoma County Jail on felony hit-and-run charges. She is being held on $20,000 bail.
Previous coverage: 70-Year-Old North Bay Woman Severely Injured in Hit-and-Run
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