The Santa Clara Police Department (SCPD) has arrested the driver of a car that killed a Santa Clara student and charged him with manslaughter.

On the morning of Feb. 9, SCPD arrested Jonathan Drake, 39, at the San Jose Police Department, 201 W. Mission St. in San Jose, according to a records request submitted to the SCPD.

Late in 2024, Drake allegedly drove his BMW into a tree onto the median just south of Campbell Avenue, near Domicilio Apartments, 431 El Camino Real in Santa Clara, on Santa Clara University’s main campus. 

The collision caused the tree to topple. It struck SCU sophomore Kephas Pope, 18, while he was walking his bike across the street. Pope later died from his injuries.

The records request does not list why SCPD arrested Drake at the San Jose Police Department. Further details as to why police took nearly 15 months to arrest Drake were not contained in the request. 

Lt. Eric Lagergren, the public information officer for SCPD, wrote in an email that the arrest is “still an active case.”

Drake posted his $100,000 bail the same day as his arrest, according to the records request, and was subsequently released. 

Police charged Drake with vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence. How much jail time Drake will face depends on whether he is convicted of a felony or misdemeanor. Such cases are called “wobblers.” 

If convicted of a felony, Drake faces a fine up to $10,000 and two, four or six years in a California state prison. If convicted of a misdemeanor, the maximum penalty is one year in the Santa Clara County Jail.

A conviction could also carry a three-year driver’s license revocation.

Given that police did not charge Drake with gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, the records request indicates Drake was not under the influence at the time.

The Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office is charging the crime as a felony, according to the Superior Court of California’s website. While the case is labeled “active,” there are no court dates scheduled.

Pope’s family has also filed a civil suit against Santa Clara County, the apartment complex’s developers Sobrato and Greystar, California Department of Transportation (CalTrans) and the city, alleging the agencies created deadly conditions that led to Pope’s death.

Los Angeles-based lawyer Dana Taschner is representing the family in that suit. 

“The family is committed to the reduction of speed and dangers on El Camino Real to prevent the crushing loss of a loved one on a known dangerous roadway adjacent to SCU,” Taschner wrote in an email in response to the arrest.

Contact David Alexander d.todd.alexander@gmail.com