Palo Alto PD: No preferential treatment for Kyle Shanahan after crash

The picture of Kyle Shanahan's July 14 car accident is becoming more clear after the head coach set the record straight with a handful of reporters on Tuesday. Now the Palo Alto Police Department is offering some additional details.

Shanahan told reporters the information being reported that he was not at fault for the collision was wrong and that he was at fault for the wreck. That assessment differed from the publicly available data that indicated the 21-year-old female driver who was also involved in the crash was considered at fault for the crash.

The Palo Alto PD never publicly commented on who was at fault for the accident in the immediate aftermath of the collision per ESPN. Now they've released a statement that confirmed what Shanahan said, and noted the differing account of who was at fault came because of a paperwork error .

Via ESPN's Nick Wagoner:

Kyle Shanahan’s statement that he provided is correct and that he was found at fault for the collision. There was a clerical error in the preparation of the report that was transmitted to the State database. We are in the process of correcting that error. It is the officer’s discretion at the scene of the collision as to whether they issue a citation to either party. It is not uncommon for officers to elect to not issue a citation to either party involved in a collision. Neither party in this situation was provided preferential treatment.

While it's unlikely to completely irradicate conspiracy theories about why Shanahan wasn't initially listed as at fault for the accident, the explanation certainly makes sense.

Much of the buzz around the Shanahan car accident story has stemmed from the lack of immediate reporting around it after the story took nearly two weeks to break. Then internet sleuths dug up information that showed Shanahan was using his phone at the time of the accident, which didn't line up with the report that showed the other driver was at fault.

However, Shanahan clearing the air with reporters and the Palo Alto PD indicating how the incorrect information got out helps put the story together. Shanahan was distracted by his phone, got in a car accident, and the police made a clerical error when sending the information to California's online database. All of that makes far more sense than the previously murky iteration of the story.

Shanahan won't speak with reporters in a public setting until he's cleared from his concussion, so it may be awhile before any additional lingering questions are answered.

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This article originally appeared on Niners Wire: Palo Alto PD: No preferential treatment for Kyle Shanahan after crash

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