On August 6, 2026, at approximately 10:30 p.m., Petaluma Police officers responded to a report of an unknown subject who had climbed into the bed of a stranger's pickup truck and was refusing to leave.
Officers arrived and located the subject, identified as 28-year-old Santa Rosa resident Demario Robinson, lying in the bed of the truck. Robinson repeatedly failed to comply with officers' commands and refused to exit the vehicle. Officers entered the truck bed and attempted to place Robinson into handcuffs, at which point he began physically resisting and kicking at officers. Officers were ultimately able to safely place him into handcuffs.
A records check revealed that Robinson had several outstanding warrants.
During a search incident to arrest, officers located suspected narcotics in Robinson’s possession.
During the medical assessment of Robinson and after learning he would be transported to jail, Robinson again became physically resistive, repeatedly kicking and pulling away from officers, creating a risk of injury to himself and others. Robinson was placed into a restraint device to safely control his movements and was transported to the Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility. Robinson was booked on his outstanding warrants and additional charges related to the incident.
Several hours later, at approximately 2:00 a.m., Petaluma Police officers responded to the area of Old Redwood Highway near Twin Oaks Tavern in Penngrove after a passing motorist reported a man walking in the roadway, in the dark, in the opposing lane of traffic, while pushing a shopping cart.
The area is a rural section of Old Redwood Highway with limited lighting, narrow shoulders, and a posted speed limit of 50 mph. Due to the immediate safety risk posed to the pedestrian and passing motorists, Petaluma officers responded while the California Highway Patrol was advised of the incident.
Officers located the man, identified as 21-year old Penngrove resident Cesar Rodriguez-Macias, walking in the roadway with a shopping cart. Rodriguez-Macias repeatedly ignored officers' commands to stop and continued walking. Officers attempted to de-escalate the situation by communicating with Rodriguez-Macias to move out of the roadway due to him nearly being struck by passing vehicles, however he refused.
When officers attempted to take Rodriguez-Macias into custody, he fled on foot. An officer pursued Rodriguez-Macias where a physical confrontation occurred off the roadway and led into a dirt culvert. During the struggle, Rodriguez-Macias got on top of the officer and began attacking his head. The officer sustained a minor injury to his face during the altercation.
Due to Rodriguez-Macias' continued resistance and assaultive behavior, another officer deployed a TASER however Rodriguez-Macias continued resisting. Rodriguez-Macias ultimately stopped physically resisting and was safely placed into handcuffs.
Medical personnel responded and evaluated Rodriguez-Macias before transporting him to Petaluma Valley Hospital. After being medically cleared, Rodriguez-Macias was transported to the Sonoma County Main Adult Detention Facility and booked on charges related to resisting officers, assaulting an officer, violating his pretrial release terms, and other violations associated with the incident.
The Petaluma Police Department remains committed to using de-escalation and reasonable force when necessary to safely resolve incidents. We remind community members that entering or remaining in active roadway creates a significant danger not only to pedestrians, but also to motorists and responding emergency personnel.
Media inquiries should be directed to Lieutenant Zilverio Rivera at (707) 781-1277.
