49ers coach Kyle Shanahan crash mystery deepens as police keep bodycam footage locked away

The latest developments surrounding Kyle Shanahan’s July 14 car crash have only deepened questions about how the incident was handled.Palo Alto police confirmed the 49ers coach caused the collision, yet the responding officer declined to issue a citation, citing the “discretion” afforded officers at the scene.The department has also rejected requests for the accident report and body-camera footage recorded afterward.“Nothing will be released related to this accident,” a department spokesperson told TMZ.Police said the footage would remain private even if Shanahan supported its release because other people appear in it.

California law also generally restricts access to collision reports to law enforcement and the parties involved.Those explanations may be legally defensible.They also follow an extraordinary sequence that includes an 11-day silence, an official database blaming the wrong driver, a precisely timed media rollout and reporters acknowledging they knew pieces of the story before it became public.None of those details independently proves preferential treatment or a broader conspiracy.

Viewed together, however, they form a timeline filled with contradictions, withheld information and unusually careful handling of a troubling, yet common occurrence.Shanahan’s Tesla collided with an SUV near Alma Street and Hamilton Avenue in Palo Alto.He later told reporters his phone slipped between the seat and center console.While reaching for it, Shanahan said he took his eyes off the road for roughly two seconds, crossed into oncoming traffic and struck a vehicle driven by a 21-year-old woman.Shanahan suffered a severe concussion, three broken ribs, a broken nose, a broken left hand and a facial wound requiring 40 stitches.

He said the cut was deep enough that his skull was visible.The other driver was not seriously injured and did not require hospitalization.The 49ers did not disclose the accident for 11 days, even though municipal personnel responded to...