Motorcyclist Critically Hurt In Collision With Richmond Police Car

RICHMOND (CBS SF) - A motorcyclist was critically injured when he allegedly ran a red light and broadsided an unmarked police car in Richmond on Tuesday night, a police sergeant said.

Around 10 p.m., the motorcyclist was traveling west on Rheem Avenue when he ran a red light at 23rd Street and plowed into a car driven by an undercover Richmond police officer, Sgt. Nicole Abetkov said.

The motorcyclist, who is believed to be a Richmond resident in his 30s, was taken by helicopter to John Muir Medical Center in Walnut Creek with critical injuries, police said.

The undercover officer suffered minor injuries when his car's airbags deployed, the sergeant said.

Abetkov said that in addition to running the red light, the motorcyclist was believed to have been speeding at more than 70 miles per hour.

The crash occurred less than a week after another a speeding motorcyclist crashed into a parked car on San Pablo Avenue, she said. That motorcyclist suffered injuries that were not considered life-threatening the sergeant said.

"He was lucky," she said.

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