Merced supervisor cleared in fatal accident

John Pedrozo, chairman of the Merced County Board of Supervisors, has been cleared of wrongdoing in a collision earlier this year that left a pedestrian dead, the California Highway Patrol confirmed Wednesday.

“Our investigation revealed that Mr. Pedrozo was not at fault,” Capt. Sam Samra said. “The investigation revealed that alcohol, use of a cellphone and speed were not factors in the collision.”

Pedrozo, 57, was headed north on Doppler Road around 8:50 p.m. June 2 when his Ford F-150 pickup struck 33-year-old Marco Antonio Delgado of Merced. Shortly after the accident, a second vehicle struck Delgado while he was lying in the road. He died at the scene, investigators said.

Samra said officers conducted field sobriety tests at the scene, a standard procedure in critical incidents, and determined alcohol was not a factor.

Delgado was wearing dark clothing and standing on the unlit road during twilight hours, the CHP said. “It can be very hard to pick out a silhouette in the dark,” Samra said.

Officer Moises Onsurez said investigators would not recommend that criminal charges be filed in the case.

Pedrozo described the incident as “just a terrible tragedy.”

“You just feel bad for the victim, for the family,” Pedrozo told the Sun-Star. “The whole circumstance is just awful.”

Pedrozo, in a statement issued immediately following the accident in June, described it as “the single most traumatic experience of my life.”

“I will always have the gentleman’s family and loved ones in my thoughts and prayers,” Pedrozo said in June.

The Merced County Coroner’s Office has never been able to locate anyone from Delgado’s family.

“That’s still pending. It’s still something we’re hoping can happen,” Sgt. Delray Shelton said Wednesday.

Pedrozo was first elected to public office in 2000 and held a seat on the Merced Union High School District board for one term. He was elected to the county Board of Supervisors in 2004 and won re-election in 2008 and 2012.

This story was originally published August 12, 2015 at 4:59 PM with the headline "Merced supervisor cleared in fatal accident."