San Jose, CA, September 14 – A man died after being struck by a Tesla while crossing Curtner Avenue near Stone Avenue early Saturday morning, according to San Jose police. The man was attempting to cross outside a marked crosswalk when he was hit by a westbound 2016 Tesla Model X. Paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene. His name has not been released.
San Jose pedestrian dies after being hit by Tesla on Curtner Avenue
The crash happened around 12:15 a.m. on September 12, 2026, on Curtner Avenue near Stone Avenue in San Jose, according to police. A preliminary investigation found that a man was crossing Curtner Avenue outside of a marked crosswalk when he was struck by a 2016 Tesla Model X traveling westbound.
Responding paramedics pronounced the man dead at the scene. Police have not released his name.
The driver of the Tesla stayed at the scene after the crash, according to police. No arrests or citations have been reported in connection with the incident.
Details beyond the preliminary account have not been released. The exact circumstances of the crossing, whether any additional factors contributed, and the victim’s identity remain unconfirmed as the investigation continues.
What California law requires of drivers around pedestrians
Vehicle Code section 21950 requires a driver to yield the right of way to a pedestrian crossing within any marked crosswalk, or within an unmarked crosswalk at an intersection. Subdivision (b) is the one people misread: a pedestrian may walk or run, and doing either does not forfeit the right of way.
Subdivision (c) puts a separate duty on the driver. A driver approaching a pedestrian in any crosswalk must exercise all due care and reduce the speed of the vehicle. That duty applies whether or not the pedestrian had the right of way, and subdivision (d) preserves it: nothing in the section relieves a driver of the duty to use due care for the safety of any pedestrian in the roadway.
The deadline that applies to a claim like this one
Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 gives two years for an action for injury to, or for the death of, an individual caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another. The same two years covers an injury claim and a death claim; there is no separate, shorter period because someone died.
Who is entitled to bring a claim when someone is killed
Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 decides who may bring a wrongful death action. The first group is the surviving spouse, domestic partner, children and the issue of deceased children, or, where there is no surviving issue, whoever would take the estate by intestate succession.
A second group may bring the action only if they were financially dependent on the person who died: a putative spouse and their children, stepchildren, parents, and the legal guardians of the person who died where the parents are deceased. Parents are in that second group, which is the part families are most often surprised by, because dependency has to be shown rather than assumed.
Talking to someone about it
Culver Legal represents people injured in collisions across California. A conversation about what happened costs nothing, and we work on a contingency fee, which means there is no fee unless we win. If we do not win, we do not pass the case costs on to you either.
Nothing on this page is legal advice about any particular case, and the facts of a reported collision often change as the investigation continues.
