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Women Dies in Berkeley's First Pedestrian Fatality of 2010

By Riya Bhattacharjee with Bay City News
Thursday March 11, 2010 - 12:00:00 PM

An Oakland woman was struck and killed by a truck Wednesday night near a South Berkeley intersection.The suspect, 42-year-old Jesse Donald Kelly of Oakland, was arrested at the scene and booked for gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated and driving under the influence of alcohol, causing injury or death. The driver, stopped after the incident and cooperated with police, Berkeley Police Department spokesperson Officer Andrew Frankel said. He said the incident was Berkeley’s first pedestrian related fatality of 2010. 

According to Frankel, Berkeley police responded to a report of an injury accident near the intersection of Adeline and Harmon streets at 9:05 p.m. March 10.  

Police officers found the victim just south of the intersection in the southbound lanes of traffic. The Berkeley Fire Department responded to the scene and transported the victim to the Alameda County Hospital where she was pronounced dead upon arrival. 

The Alameda County coroner's bureau has identified her as Joanne Bolden, 57, of Oakland. 

Berkeley police are continuing to investigate the death. 

The fatality came a day after the Berkeley City Council passed a resolution naming March Zachary Cruz Pedestrian Safety Month, in honor of the 5-year-old LeConte Elementary School kindergartner who was struck and killed by a welder’s truck on Feb. 27, 2009. 

Berkeley has one of the densest pedestrian populations in California. According to the state Office of Traffic Safety, Berkeley is the most dangerous city of its size in the state.