Watch Sonoma County: "Ravitch to probe quick end to Cloverdale case"

By PAUL PAYNE

Sonoma County District Attorney Jill Ravitch said Monday she will investigate the handling of a Cloverdale hit-and-run crash involving a 17-year-old driver whose case was settled in surprisingly short order, two days before the 83-year-old victim died and without the required notification to his family.

Ravitch said she will conduct a “thorough review” of the juvenile court case of Cloverdale High School basketball forward Mitch Carlson, who was accused of fleeing the scene and causing great bodily injury after running down longtime resident Miguel Sanchez on Dec. 27.

The extraordinarily quick settlement — two days instead of a month or much longer — has raised questions about the role of then-District Attorney Stephen Passalacqua, whose brother represented the young driver. The rapid-fire resolution was reached during Passalacqua’s last days in office.

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