Mayor placed on citizen’s arrest after traffic dispute: Foster City’s Herb Perez denies driver’s allegations of assault

Perez was riding his motorcycle when he was reportedly involved in a “traffic incident” with a Foster City woman driving a Toyota Prius.

Law enforcement was called and the woman requested Perez be placed under a citizen’s arrest for assault and battery, said Foster City police Capt. Tracy Avelar. Per state law, officers complied and issued Perez a citation before releasing him at the scene, according to Foster City police.

Perez denied the allegations and the Daily Journal is not identifying the woman because she is an alleged victim of a crime.

Avelar said officers did not witness the alleged incident and that standard procedure is to issue the citizen’s arrest unless there’s clear evidence that a report is false. She would not provide further details from the incident, noting it was a dispute between two private citizens.

Police are expected to compile a report before sending it to the district attorney, who will ultimately decide whether to prosecute. Avelar said it may take several days before the report is finalized and sent, noting no one is in custody.

Perez, owner of Gold Medal Family Center and a former U.S. Olympian in taekwondo who won gold in the 1992 Olympics, was first elected to the Foster City Council in 2011 and re-elected in 2015.

Perez, who is currently out of the country, denied the allegations and said it was he who first called police to report the woman driving erratically.

Perez said he was riding his motorcycle along Edgewater Boulevard when the woman in a Prius suddenly veered toward him while allegedly speeding. He said he was nearly pushed off the road and the two got into a verbal dispute.

Perez, who was hoping the police would talk to the woman about safety, said he drove around to get behind the vehicle to document her license plate before calling police.

Perez said it wasn’t the first time he reported someone driving erratically in the city and requested police contact them.

Perez said he remained on his motorcycle the entire time until police arrived and did not touch the woman nor was there evidence of any accident. He believed the woman was rushing to drop off her kids at a nearby daycare center.

When asked if she was injured, the woman reportedly said she experienced whiplash and was taken to a local hospital in a neck brace, Perez said.

He said no one is prevented from filing a report, but emphasized police did not issue charges or arrest him themselves as there wasn’t evidence any assault or battery occurred.

“The police cannot stop anyone from saying whatever they want to say,” Perez said. “It’s a sad day when any random person can cause this kind of consternation.”

The misdemeanor assault and battery charge carries a maximum punishment of six months in county jail and a fine up to $1,000, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

samantha@smdailyjournal.com

(650) 344-5200 ext. 106