Resident Questions City Over Police-Involved Crash That Injured His Mother

A Salina resident used public comment at a Salina City Commission meeting to raise questions about a 2025 crash involving his mother and an on-duty Salina police officer.

Dan Price addressed commissioners regarding an April 10, 2025 crash near the 900 block of East Crawford Street. Price said his mother, Susan Price, was attempting to cross East Crawford while traveling south on Lewis Street when her vehicle was struck by a Salina police vehicle.

The officer involved has been identified in related court/citation records as Melissa K. Short-Eshleman. 

According to Price, his mother suffered internal bleeding, a cracked sternum, cracked ribs and other injuries that required a three-day hospital stay.

Price told commissioners he believes the crash involved several factors, including the setup of the construction zone at the Crawford and Lewis intersection. He said barricades, construction equipment and limited visibility made it difficult for his mother to safely navigate the intersection.

Price said his mother had attempted to cross the intersection multiple times before the crash. He also told commissioners the police vehicle was traveling approximately 62 mph at impact.

“The very next day, the barricades and cones at that intersection were moved, significantly improving visibility for drivers,” Price said, according to the meeting transcript. He also said the construction-zone speed limit was later reduced from 30 mph to 20 mph.

Price said he contacted the Salina Police Department while his mother was still hospitalized to request dash-camera footage, body-camera footage and preservation of the police vehicle’s black-box data. He said he later submitted formal records requests for those materials.

During his remarks, Price said his mother was issued citations for a stop sign violation and failure to yield to an emergency vehicle. He also said the officer involved received a citation for not possessing a valid driver’s license at the time of the crash, but that the citation was later dismissed with court costs paid by the state.

Price also raised questions about whether the officer was wearing a seat belt at the time of the crash. He told commissioners that, after reviewing body-camera footage, he believed the officer told the investigating state trooper she realized she was not wearing her seat belt.

Price said he asked whether a seat-belt citation would be issued and was told one would not be.

One of Price’s central concerns involved the vehicle’s black-box data. Price told commissioners he had specifically requested that the data be preserved immediately after the crash, but later was informed it had been destroyed.

“I believe that this raises serious concerns regarding preservation of evidence,” Price said.

At one point during the public comment, Mayor Mike Hoppock interrupted Price as his time was running. According to the transcript, Hoppock said, “Mr. Price, a few more minutes, and I don’t know if you have anything to hand in to the clerk.” Price responded that he had copies and asked for one more minute. Hoppock allowed him to continue.

Price ended his remarks by asking the commission several questions, including why an officer was operating a city-owned police vehicle without a valid driver’s license, why requested video took months to be released, what steps the Salina Police Department would take to prevent a similar incident, and whether the city would review how the crash and follow-up communication were handled.

No formal action was taken during the public-comment exchange. Public comment periods generally allow residents to address commissioners, but they do not always result in immediate discussion or action by the governing body.