Labeled “accidental death” of 27-year-old Phoenix Corwen Dunn

By Ted Asregadoo, PIO, Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office

Martinez, California — An independent review into a law enforcement-involved fatal incident in December 2025 determined that criminal charges are not warranted in the accidental death of 27-year-old Phoenix Corwen Dunn in the City of Antioch.

The incident began around 10:30 am on December 22, 2025. A security guard at the Comfort Inn (now Antioch Inn & Suites) called 911 to report that a man (later identified as Phoenix Dunn) had pulled a fire alarm and fled. The guard chased Dunn to the nearby bowling alley. The guard tried to detain Dunn, but a struggle ensued, and Dunn broke free and ran behind a Kaiser Permanente Delta Fair Medical Offices near the bowling alley. An Antioch police officer, dispatched to the scene after the 911 call, spotted Dunn in the Kaiser parking lot. Dunn then climbed over a fence and made his way onto State Route 4 near the Somersville Road offramp.

Dunn ran across several lanes of the freeway in moderate to heavy traffic. In the left lane (Number 1 Lane), Dunn was struck by a county car driven by Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office Inspector Sean Eriksen, who was on-duty at the time. A California Highway Patrol officer driving directly behind Eriksen witnessed the collisions. A bystander who was also driving on the freeway, pulled over and performed life-saving aid on Dunn, but Dunn was pronounced dead at 10:49 am. The county coroner later ruled Dunn’s death an accident. Eriksen, who suffered minor injuries, stayed at the scene and gave a voluntary statement. (See related articles here and here)

The California Highway Patrol spent about six months reconstructing the crash. It found the car in proper working order, and there was no evidence that Eriksen was impaired, distracted or driving unsafely. Witnesses and video showed that Dunn entered the freeway suddenly, where pedestrians are prohibited, and the CHP concluded the crash was unavoidable.

Following the fatal incident, the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office requested the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office to conduct an independent review, because the incident involved one of its own employees, Senior Inspector Sean Eriksen.

Under California law, an accidental death is not a crime. Murder or manslaughter charges require proof beyond a reasonable doubt that a driver acted with malice or criminal negligence. After reviewing the full record, Alameda County District Attorney’s Office found no such evidence and concluded that no further criminal inquiry is warranted. The full report is available on the Contra Costa District Attorney’s website.

According to localcrimenews.com, the five-foot, nine-inch tall, 165-pound Dunn was White, a resident of Castro Valley and had been arrested on Oct. 2, 2025, by Dublin Police for indecent exposure after illegally occupying a dwelling.

Allen D. Payton contributed to this report.

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Emergency personnel Hwy 4 fatality 12-22-25

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