A freak skateboarding accident has left an elderly Capitola woman dead.
Maryanne Slettehaugh, 83, was out on her daily walk Tuesday in Capitola Village when a skateboarder came barreling down a hill and smashed into her, police said. She died of her injuries after landing hard on the pavement.
Slettehaugh was hit by a skateboarder who was traveling 20 miles per hour, Capitola police Sgt. Andrew Dally told KSBW. The skateboarder tried to jump off his board but he collided with Slettehaugh.
Police did not identify the 17-year-old skateboarder who immediately stopped and stayed with the woman until help could arrive. Slettehaugh was airlifted to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center's trauma center with serious injuries.
Skateboarding in Capitola Village is illegal. The teenager was not arrested and his parents were alerted, police said.
"It was not a malicious type of act. He seemed like a pretty clean cut and honest kid," Dally said. "But we prohibit skateboarding in Capitola Village for this exact reason."
