An Erie police officer and another motorist were taken to UPMC Hamot after their vehicles collided at a downtown intersection Sept. 12.
The officer was taken to the hospital with a suspected head injury and the other motorist appears to have suffered major injury in the collision, which was reported Sept 12 at 7:07 a.m. at the intersection of West 11th and Sassafras streets, according to Erie Police Chief Dan Spizarny.
Authorities have not identified the two drivers.
According to Spizarny, the officer, a patrol supervisor, was responding to a call and was traveling south on Sassafras Street when it appears the officer went through a red light and struck a vehicle traveling west on West 11th Street. The struck vehicle, a Toyota Prius, went up on the sidewalk and came to rest next to a building on the southwest corner of the intersection, according to Spizarny and information from the scene.
The police SUV, for a supervisor, sustained heavy front-end damage, and came to rest facing north on Sassafras street at the southwestern corner with West 11th Street, across the street from McDonald's. Sassafras runs one way south.
Spizarny said it is believed the patrol vehicle had its emergency lights activated at the time, but investigators will confirm that through a review of surveillance video as part of the investigation.
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Erie Bureau of Police accident investigators are investigating the accident with assistance from the Pennsylvania State Police, Spizarny said.
An Erie police traffic investigator said he has determined that the driver of an Erie police SUV failed to make sure an intersection was clear of traffic when the the SUV was involved in a two-car crash at West 11th and Sassafras streets on Sept. 12.
The Erie County District Attorney's Office will decide whether charges are warranted in the case, the investigator, Sgt. Thomas Dunmire, said on Sept. 17. District Attorney Elizabeth Hirz said she is aware of the referral.
Dunmire said three people were injured in the crash, which an Erie 911 dispatcher said was reported shortly before 7:10 a.m. on Sept. 12.
The three, Dunmire said, are the driver of the police SUV, who suffered minor injuries; the driver of a Toyota Prius, who suffered serious injuries; and a homeless person who was a bystander to the accident and suffered a broken leg.
Police did not release the names of the three, who Dunmire said are all men. He said no passengers were in the SUV or the Prius.
Emergency lights on, but no siren
Police reviewed surveillance video as part of the probe, Dunmire said.
He said the SUV was responding to a call and had a red light as it entered the West 11th Street intersection heading south on Sassafras Street, which is one way south. He said the SUV had its emergency lights on but its siren was not activated.
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As the SUV went through the intersection at 43 mph, Dunmire said, "it struck the Toyota Prius that was traveling west" on West 11th Street.
Dunmire said the driver of the SUV failed "to clear the intersection properly" to make sure no traffic was on West 11th Street.
Homeless man was on sidewalk when struck
The SUV, designated for a supervisor, had its front end heavily damaged and came to rest facing north on Sassafras Street on the southwestern corner with West 11th Street. The Toyota Prius, also heavily damaged, came to rest along West 11th Street against the north wall of a building at the same corner.
The homeless man was on the sidewalk on West 11th Street when he was struck during the accident, Dunmire said. He said the man's right leg was broken.
Dunmire is leading the investigation into the crash. He said the Pennsylvania State Police are providing support.
Asked whether anyone would be charged over the crash, Dunmire said "the DA's Office will make that determination."
A motorist whose vehicle was struck by an Erie police sport utility vehicle at a westside intersection on Sept. 12 has died of his injuries, according to Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook.
Cook on Sept. 26 identified him as Matthew Zaborowski, 41, of Erie, and said the cause of death was blunt-force trauma.
Zaborowski died Sept. 25 at 11:59 a.m. at UPMC Hamot of injuries he suffered in the traffic accident at West 11th and Sassafras streets, Cook said.
Zaborowski had been hospitalized since the accident, which was reported shortly before 7:10 a.m. Sept. 12. The city police officer who was driving the patrol SUV, whose name has not been released, suffered minor injuries in the crash. An unhoused person who was a bystander at the accident scene, whom authorities have not identified, suffered a broken leg, police reported.
The Erie police officer involved in the crash remains on administrative duty, Police Chief Dan Spizarny said Sept. 25. The accident remains under investigation, according to Sgt. Thomas Dunmire, an accident investigator with the city police bureau.
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Dunmire previously said his probe showed the driver of the SUV failed "to clear the intersection properly" to make sure no traffic was on West 11th Street.
The Pennsylvania State Police are assisting Erie police in the accident investigation. The Erie County District Attorney's Office will review the results of the investigation once completed to determine whether charges are warranted in the crash.
What happened in the crash?
Erie police reported after the crash that a city police supervisor was driving the SUV in response to a call and was heading south on Sassafras Street. The SUV had the red light as it entered the intersection of West 11th Street, and Dunmire reported previously that the SUV had its emergency lights on but its siren was not activated.
As the SUV went through the intersection at 43 mph, according to Dunmire, it struck a Toyota Prius that was traveling west on West 11th Street. The Prius then struck the unhoused person, Dunmire said.
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September 12, 2025 | Erie Times-News: Web Edition Articles (PA)
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