Sonoma Police Department

05/27/2026

Community awareness bulletin:

On Friday evening, 5/22/26, a customer at a local restaurant had a very expensive purse, along with the contents of the purse stolen while the customer was seated at the restaurant’s bar. The purse was taken from the hook underneath the bar located in front of the purse’s owner when it was stolen. Due to the value of the purse and the contents of the purse, this crime was a felony level theft.

The attached image is the suspect who stole the purse and we are asking for our communities assistance in identifying this person. This theft was captured on the business video surveillance system and based on our review of that incident, we believe this suspect has done this before and likely will again if we cannot identify and hold this person accountable.

Please take a look at the image of the suspect and if you can identify him for us, please reach out in one of the following ways-

Call us and let us know, you may remain anonymous this way- 707-996-3602
Email- [email protected] (less anonymous)
Or you may use direct message through this page on Facebook.

Sonoma is still a very safe city and crimes like this occur and can occur in all areas of the world. We at Sonoma Police believe that when the community stands together against crime, it sends a message to those coming to our area to commit crime that we are united in keeping Sonoma a safe and lawful city.

05/20/2026

This posting is very lengthy as it addresses e-bike safety and laws that are applicable to the City of Sonoma as well as the rest of the County and State. It is important as we are seeing more e-bikes and human powered bikes on the roadways around Sonoma. As we head into the summer months, many of these riders being youth riders. We are hopeful that parents and youth will read this and understand the laws and lawful types of e-bikes before you put your children on the roadway with them. An important thing to remember is whether you are riding a human powered bicycle, or the electric variety, you must still follow the rules of the road and are subject to the same laws that govern all other vehicles. (California Vehicle Code 21200(a)(1))

As the e-bike’s appearance and enjoyment is evolving from a standard-looking bicycle to more of a motorcycle-like appearance, youth are finding their way to the seats of these modes of transportation. Safety of the youth riding these e-bikes as well as human powered bicycles starts at home with parents ensuring that their kids only have access to e-bikes that are legal to be ridden on public roadways and they know the rules of the road to keep them safe and riding lawfully.

The California Highway Patrol created an online “Electric Bicycle Safety and Training” course that is very informative for parents considering these for their kids as well as for the kids that are going to be riding these e-bikes. The course teaches you most of what you need to know about what a street legal e-bike is, what safety gear is required, rules of the road, and what to do in the event of an accident. The following link will take you directly to the training course: https://rise.articulate.com/share/yB3Hip8AYzOGdY0dqnd42mQ3k0c6Jza1 #/ Or you can visit the CHP Website that has the link above as well as other valuable links to bicycle and pedestrian safety on California roadways: https://www.chp.ca.gov/programs-services/services-information/Bike-and-Ped-Safety/

E-bikes are identified in the California Vehicle Code as Class 1-3. Each class has unique attributes and rules to follow. To simplify the law, Class 1 and Class 2 have two wheels and a pedal/crank system and an electric motor that will assist the rider in pedaling up to 20 mph. Once these reach 20 mph, the electric motor will no longer assist the rider. Class 1 has a pedal activated motor that will assist only when actively pedaling. Class 2 has a throttle that can be activated while pedaling or independent of the pedals moving. Both of these classes of e-bikes can be ridden by all ages where bicycles can legally be ridden. Anyone under the age of 18 must be always wearing a helmet while riding a bicycle, regardless of how it is powered.

Class 3 e-bikes can go faster than 20 mph but cannot exceed 28 mph and can only be ridden by someone over the age of 16. Class 3 e-bikes cannot be ridden on bike or pedestrian trails but can be ridden on public roadways so long as all rules of the road are followed by the rider. Anyone riding a class 3 e-bike must wear a helmet, regardless of age.

Any electric bike with a motor of 750 watts or more is not a class 1-3 e-bike and requires DMV registration, insurance, and a valid drivers license to operate. All e-bikes sold in California after 2017 are required to have a sticker affixed to them that displays the class and wattage of the motor.

Every e-bike is required to have “Fully Operable Pedals” (CVC 312.5). We are aware there are several companies that ship e-bikes to customers with both crank/pedals as well as a peg (like on a motorcycle) that can be attached when assembled. In California, if the bike does not have a fully operable pedal/crank, it does not qualify as an e-bike. This is a very important differentiation as this becomes a moped or motorcycle and will require a valid drivers license, registration, and insurance. To be clear, the meaning of “fully operable” is that the crank must be capable of propelling the bike manually.

The City of Sonoma has additional city ordinances that govern the use of bicycles on sidewalks and bicycle/pedestrian paths. These ordinances are like the above listed state laws, with a few further restrictions that are important to know. Specific to the Sonoma Plaza no bicycles, whether powered by humans or motor driven (including e-bikes) can be ridden on any sidewalk of the plaza, all four sides of the plaza and both sides of the roadways. This includes the Plaza Park itself, all bicycles must be walked through the plaza, not ridden. For the rest of the City of Sonoma, the ordinances allow the riding of bicycles and class 1 & 2 e-bikes on sidewalks and bike paths so long as the speed does not endanger the safety of pedestrians.
Link to Chapter 10.74 of the City of Sonoma Municipal Code- https://sonoma.municipal.codes/SMC/10.74

These laws have been designed to provide a safe mode of transportation for people of all ages across the city and state. We have seen some very dangerous bicycle and e-bike operations around the city. It is our hope that all parents can spend time with their kids reviewing the CHP link to bicycle safety before they head out of the door and enter the roadways where unsafe operation can lead to very serious physical and emotional injuries.

Electric Bicycles (E-Bikes) are a growing trend that allow riders to bike at higher speeds and travel greater distances.  With the increase in E-Bike popularity, the need for safety education and training is essential. Click on the link to take the E-Bike training under the “Electric Bicycle Trai...

05/19/2026

*** update. Owner and Sky have been reunited. This white lab was brought in to Sonoma pd this morning. She was found near the bike trail and 1st st west. Give us a call if she is yours. 707-996-3602.

05/06/2026

Sonoma Police Department Case #26-245 and #26-246
Press Release- May 6, 2026
Prepared by- Brandon Cutting, Chief of Police

Last night (5/5/26) at 6:15 pm, the Sonoma Police Department started receiving 911 calls regarding a physical fight between juveniles in several locations along the east and north side of the Plaza. These calls were coming in at the same time as the Farmer’s Market that was underway with a band playing music at the amphitheater.

Deputies from Sonoma PD and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office responded to the scene as it was reported the physical fight was still in progress. When deputies arrived, they quickly were able to identify the subjects involved in the physical fight and they were separated, four were juvenile females, one an adult female. While deputies were working through what had occurred, several of the females attempted to re-engage one of the others by charging at her. Those subjects were intercepted by a deputy and stopped from being able to cause more violence. When this second encounter occurred, EMS teams from the Sonoma Valley Fire Department were attempting to evaluate injuries on the involved subjects.

The initial fight involved five females, but there were approximately 20 additional juveniles and young adults that were present, many recording with phones, who could be heard verbally encouraging the physical fight. When the second incident occurred in front of the Sonoma Barracks/Visitors Center, the crowd gathered around this incident as well, albeit much quieter than the first situation as deputies and California State Parks were already there.

Two of the juveniles were transported to Sonoma Valley Hospital for further medical evaluation of injuries received during the initial fight between the females.
The adult female was arrested for PC 273d- Inflicting corporal injury on a minor.
One of the juvenile females was arrested/cited for PC 148(a)(1)- Obstructing a peace officer.

Since the incident, the Sonoma Police Department has been provided with several cell phone video views of the altercations that took place prior to our arrival. As we review each of the videos, we are determining if additional charges are warranted against any of the subjects involved.

If you have any information which you feel will be beneficial to our investigation, please contact the Sonoma Police Department by calling 707-996-3602.

We appreciate the community’s concern over the incident as it took place in a very visible way at the first of many 2026 Farmer’s Market events. The City of Sonoma and the Sonoma Police Department are dedicated to making sure the family-friendly nature of the Farmer’s Market maintains a peaceful and fun atmosphere. Sonoma Police will be present at every Farmer’s Market through the season, likely with an increased presence over the coming weeks for safety. Four of the youth involved are students at Sonoma area schools. The School District and appropriate school site administrators were advised of the situation and will continue to work to ensure the campuses remain a safe learning environment for all students.

05/05/2026

Public safety message from the Sonoma Police Department about warmer weather and home security issues that we all need to be attentive too.

As the temperatures heat up, many begin to relax about home security issues that opportunistic criminals like to take advantage of. Here are a few of the most common things you can do to deter crime in the community.

1. Ensure you put your windows up and lock the doors of your cars. If you are just “running inside for a minute”, at least put your windows up enough that an arm cannot fit through them.

2. Don’t leave valuables in your vehicles, if you don’t have a choice at least place them out of view of anyone looking into the vehicle through the closed window and locked door.

3. If you need to park a work truck or vehicle with tools at your home, ensure they are kept in a locked container, secured to the vehicle. If it is not possible to secure all of your tools, it is recommended that you park these vehicles in a driveway or at least directly in front of your house. Especially over the weekend, we highly recommend moving the items that cannot be secured to a locked location on your property.

4. Fuel prices are at a record high, and it has been predicted they will continue to rise. Ensure you have a locking gas cap if you don’t have a vehicle that has the anti-syphoning valves in the filler tube.

5. If you sleep with the doors open, ensure you have a screen door with a working locking mechanism. We don’t recommend you leave anything valuable or car keys within reach of any screen door. The screens are meant to provide protection from bugs and four-legged critters, not the two-legged kind.

6. If you sleep with your windows open, we suggest having a locking mechanism that will allow you to get cool fresh air, while preventing the window from opening enough for a person to fit through. This is especially important for ground level windows.

7. Bicycles (both electric and human powered) draw the eye of these criminals. It is not recommended that any bicycles be left so they are visible from the street. If there are no other locations to store a bicycle, ensure it is secured with a lock so it cannot be easily taken.

Sonoma is a very safe and respectful community. Even so, opportunistic criminals will travel through the city late at night when everyone is sleeping so they can find any vehicles that were left open with some goodies to be walked away with.

If you find that you are the victim of one of these thieves, please contact the Sonoma Police Department to make a report. This can be done as an online report, or you may call our non-emergency line. You may think the theft is minor or there is nothing that can be done, but remember, if your car gets broken into it is likely someone nearby had the same thing happen. There are many tools at our disposal to locate suspects from these cases, but we cannot begin to work on them if we don’t know about it in the first place.

Link to our online reporting tool- https://www.sonomacity.org/report-a-crime/
Sonoma Police Department non-emergency line- 707-996-3602
Sonoma Police Department non-emergency dispatch line- 707-996-3601

If you see something suspicious, please call and report it to us. Posting it on social media is great, but we don’t see every post through every platform, making a direct report is the only way to ensure we know.

In progress crime should be reported immediately to us via 911.

If you witness a crime or suspicious activity but you were not the victim, please click here to submit a crime tip. Sonoma Police Department takes crime reports within the City of Sonoma only. The Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office and Windsor Police Department are in different jurisdictions so crimes...

04/04/2026

Hank has been located!

We are very grateful for the Sonoma County Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue team for responding out in the middle of the night and for locating Hank within the first hour of their ground search for him. Thankfully, he was found safe and was transported by Sonoma Valley Fire Department to an area hospital to make sure he is going to be okay.

We will post more information about the Search and Rescue team so the community knows what a important function this team has to our community in the near future.

***Missing Person***

Hank is 87 years old, is 6'4", was last seen wearing a grey sweater and dark pants. Hank went missing near the intersection of 4th St East and E. Napa Street in Sonoma. He has been missing since approximately 6:15 pm on Friday evening, 4/3.

Hank lives in Sonoma and has some hearing loss and suffers from dementia.

The Sonoma Police Department, Sonoma County Sheriff's Office, family and friends have been looking for Hank since he went missing. Just a short time ago, the Sonoma Sheriff's Office Search and Rescue team (20 trained search staff) arrived in Sonoma and are beginning to search for Hank.

If you see Hank or think you have seen him since the time he went missing, please call our dispatch center at: 707-565-2121 or 911 if you find it to be an emergency.

The photograph attached to this is not from last night, rather an image so you know what he looks like if you see him.

We greatly appreciate the communities help in locating Hank and returning him to his family safely.

02/18/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DATE: February 17, 2026
CONTACT: Brandon Cutting, Chief of Police, City of Sonoma
EMAIL: [email protected]
CASE #: 26-98

Sonoma Police Department Investigates Fatal Vehicle-Pedestrian Collision in the 600 block of Broadway.

On 2/17/26 at 6:56 PM, Deputies from the Sonoma Police Department and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office along with EMS from the Sonoma Valley Fire Department arrived at a reported collision involving a motor vehicle and a pedestrian in the 600 block of Broadway.

Upon arrival, emergency responders located a 73 year old female pedestrian suffering from life-threatening injuries. Life-saving measures were performed at the scene by Sonoma Valley Fire and EMS; however, the pedestrian was pronounced deceased at the scene.

A second pedestrian was located at the same location, a 74 year old female, who was seriously injured. SVFD EMS conducted emergency care of her and were able to transport her to an area trauma hospital, where she remains in critical but stable condition.

The driver of the involved vehicle remained on the scene and is fully cooperating with investigators.

Preliminary findings indicate that the vehicle was traveling northbound on Broadway when the collision occurred. At this stage of the investigation, alcohol, drugs, and the vehicle’s speed do not appear to be contributing factors of this tragic event. The identity of the deceased is being withheld pending the notification of the next of kin by the Sonoma County Coroner’s Office.

This is a tragic event for our community, our deepest condolences go out to the family and friends of the deceased as well as the seriously injured female. Both were visiting the Sonoma area from out of state.

Broadway has remained closed for approximately four hours while investigators processed the scene and it is expected to open for all traffic in the next hour (12:00 AM).

This is an active and ongoing investigation. The Sonoma Police Department is a contract city for law enforcement services through the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office. Through this partnership, we are able to bring the support of the Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Investigations Unit as well as the Accident Investigators from the Windsor Police Department to assist the Accident Investigators from the Sonoma Police Department with all aspects of this very important investigation.

If anyone may have witnessed this collision or if you have relevant video footage of this incident, please contact the Sonoma Police Department at 707-996-3602.

12/29/2025

During the holiday season we see an uptick in package theft from homes. We are currently investigating a few recent cases around the City of Sonoma and the Sonoma Valley. If you should have received a delivery over the last 3 weeks, but it wasn’t there when you checked, please contact Sonoma Police Department or the Sonoma County Sheriffs Office as soon as possible.

11/26/2025

Press Release and Public Safety Notice regarding youth and electric scooters and electric bikes:

This afternoon (Tuesday, 11/25) just after 12:30 pm, a juvenile was riding an electric stand-on scooter, when he collided with the back portion of a moving car in the intersection of Robinson Rd and Fano Ln, in the City of Sonoma. The juvenile was traveling fast and was not wearing a helmet when the collision occurred. As a result of the injuries that the juvenile received, he was transported by ambulance to Queen of the Valley Hospital. Thankfully, at this time, we can say that his injuries are not thought to be serious or life threatening.

Since this accident just occurred, the Sonoma Police Department cannot state the cause of the accident until the investigation is completed. What we can state is that the scooter was not following the laws of the roadway and failed to stop at a well-marked four way stop/intersection. In addition to failing to follow traffic laws, the juvenile was not wearing a helmet as required by law for anyone under the age of 18.

We are putting this message out right now as schools are out this week for the holidays and more days off are coming next month. Parents, please ensure that your kids know the rules of the road before leaving the house on human powered bicycle/scooters as well as the electric type. It is also up to you to know what the capabilities and class/type of e-bike your kids are riding as some may not be lawful for your kids to operate on public roadways or bike trails.

With the permission of the vehicle owner from today’s accident, we are providing a photo of what the car that was struck by the juvenile and the scooter looked like after the accident. We are very grateful and lucky that the juvenile in today’s incident was not more badly injured. Aside the physical injuries, this is a traumatic event for the occupants of the car, the juvenile on the scooter, and juvenile’s family who were called to meet their child in the ER. Accidents happen, but when we can ensure the youth are protected with a helmet and are riding in accordance with the laws of the road, we hope they are less serious and most can be prevented.

The links below are basic and we hope are helpful for parents to review with your kids, and for adults who ride the electric conveyances to know the basic rules of the road. Also, if you are considering an e-bike or e-scooter for your kids for the holidays, please review the link to the class of electric bikes to ensure your kids can legally ride them on the roadway.

Quick guide to types/class of e-bike and the requirements for each:
https://www.calbike.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/AB_1096_-_Info_for_Agencies-1.pdf

The Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition website has great information and many local programs for bicycle and e-bike safety.
https://www.bikesonoma.org/resources/ebikes/

Go Safely California has many great resources online at GoSafelyCA.org to research the type of e-bike class that is appropriate for kids, the rules of the road, and videos that are appropriate for kids and adults alike. https://gosafelyca.org/media-toolkits/

If you have any questions about the e-bike or e-scooter you already have, don’t hesitate to ask law enforcement officers or refer to the above links and those organizations.

Press release prepared by Brandon Cutting, Chief of Police, City of Sonoma.

10/06/2025

Press Release:
Sonoma Police Department Case 25-523

At 1:30 AM on 10/3/25, the Sonoma Police Department received an alarm call at Adobe Drugs on W. Napa St, Sonoma. Deputies responded to the store, arriving on-scene three minutes after being dispatched. When deputies arrived, they found that the suspects had broken a window to enter the business and fled the area prior to law enforcement arrival.

The subjects stole only a few items as the pharmacy does an excellent job of ensuring the items sought by thieves are well secured. The most expensive and unfortunate part of the burglary was the damage caused by the suspects gaining entry to the locked business.

Deputies with Sonoma PD were able to identify the vehicle that the suspects arrived in a short time before the burglary and left the city and county a few minutes after they left the business. There are no other known burglaries that the suspects committed while they were in the city and county.

Sonoma Police Department, as a contract city with the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office (SCSO), has the assistance of the SCSO Property Crimes Investigations Unit (PCI) with this investigation. Without the assistance of the experienced detectives from PCI, an ongoing investigation into suspects from out of county would be very difficult for patrol deputies.

Crimes like this are most often caused by visitors to Sonoma and the Sonoma Valley. It is for this reason that Sonoma PD encourages the community to report suspicious behavior when it is observed, nobody knows your neighborhood better than each of you. Video surveillance is an amazing tool for us to solve crime after it has happened, but the eyes and ears of the community are the best tool for prevention. The Deputies of the Sonoma Police Department and the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office remain on duty in the city and valley 24 hours/7 days a week for proactive patrol and to respond to your calls for assistance.

Prepared by the City of Sonoma, Police Chief Brandon Cutting.