Boy killed in Downtown crash, police say
This is the 45th traffic fatality reported by the LBPD this year.
Police are investigating a crash in Downtown that left a boy dead Friday night.
Long Beach police say the boy was running across Shoreline Drive near Beach Access Road around 10:08 p.m. when he was hit by 2026 Honda Accord driven by a 26-year-old Long Beach resident.
The boy was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead, according to an LBPD spokesperson.
The boy's identity is being withheld because of his age and pending the notification of his next of kin, police said.
The driver remained at the scene and cooperated with the investigation, according to the LBPD.
Police said they do not believe that speed, distracted driving or impaired driving contributed to the crash.
Authorities are asking anyone who may have seen the crash to call LBPD Collision Investigation Detail Detective Johnson at 562-570-7132.
This is the second pedestrian fatality in Long Beach in October, which the federal government designated as National Pedestrian Safety Month. So far this year, 23 pedestrians have died in crashes on Long Beach streets, according to data compiled by the Watchdog.
Overall, this is the 45th traffic fatality reported by the LBPD in 2026. Last year, the department reported 56 traffic-related fatalities from 53 crashes, making it the deadliest year on the road since at least 1990, when the city reported 51 deaths, according to LBPD data from a public records request by the Watchdog.
Fifty-five percent of 2025 traffic fatalities in 2025 (32 people) were pedestrians, according to LBPD data.
The LBPD reported 46 traffic fatalities by this time last year.
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