Overview
- Jia Lin Zheng pleaded not guilty, and a San Francisco judge authorized his release with conditions that include surrendering his driver’s license.
- Prosecutors have charged the 67-year-old with felony vehicular manslaughter, felony reckless driving, and three misdemeanor hit-and-run counts tied to the Jan. 19 SoMa crash.
- Investigators cite CHP reports of red lights run at roughly 90 mph and Waymo telemetry estimating a 98 mph impact into an unoccupied robotaxi.
- Zheng told police the Tesla experienced sudden unintended acceleration; records show no alcohol use or apparent medical episode at the time.
- The crash killed 27-year-old Mikhael Romanenko and his dog and injured others, and a separate wrongful-death lawsuit is pending as records show Zheng previously received multiple traffic citations in Hawaii.