Newly surfaced collision records have added another layer to Kyle Shanahan’s July 14 car crash, including a notation that the 49ers head coach was holding a cell phone at the time of the accident.
Shanahan was seriously hurt in the crash, suffering a severe concussion, a broken nose, three fractured ribs, a broken left hand and facial lacerations that required more than 40 stitches. He has since returned to 49ers training camp in a limited capacity while he continues to recover.
The public records, first highlighted by 49ers reporter Grant Cohn and later confirmed by multiple news outlets, include the driver-record notation “CELL PHONE HANDHELD IN USE.” The entry cites California Vehicle Code 23123.5(a), which bars drivers from holding and operating a handheld phone while driving. Even so, no citation was issued to Shanahan.
The same records say the other driver was the primary cause of the collision. They identify a 21-year-old woman driving a Mercedes SUV and list an unsafe turn as the primary collision factor. In the public file, she is marked as the at-fault driver.
The records also note that both drivers were wearing seat belts, both vehicles’ airbags deployed, and alcohol and drugs were not factors.
Those details differ from the Palo Alto Police Department’s initial public comments. At the time, the department said neither driver was cited and declined to release information.
The phone notation does not prove Shanahan caused the crash. And there is no evidence that police tried to hide the detail. The records simply include information that was not part of the department’s original public statement.
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