Following two separate off-campus incidents that occurred on the first day of the Fall semester, two students were seriously injured, and many are feeling unsafe on campus. 

During the morning of Aug. 21, San José State students received an email from Vice President for Student Affairs, Mari Fuentes-Martin about the incidents. 

“Last night was a very difficult one for our Spartan community, as two of our students were seriously injured in separate off-campus incidents,” Fuentes-Martin said. “Our hearts are with them, their families, and their friends as they face this painful time.” 

On the night of Aug. 20, a pedestrian was struck by a vehicle, according to an NBC Bay Area article. This occurred between South Third Street and East San Carlos Street, just West of campus. 

The victim of the incident was sent to the hospital shortly after and stabilized despite their critical condition.

The University is yet to confirm whether this is one of the incidents described in the email.

Michelle Smith McDonald, SJSU senior director of media relations, said the incident was not within the jurisdiction of the University Police Department.

“Because both incidents happened off campus, we are limited in what we are able to share without permission from the families, which we do not have,” McDonald said.

So far, no information has been found regarding the incident involving another student that occurred separately that night. 

Frank Stritch, a fourth-year communication studies student at SJSU, said he understands how these accidents happen, particularly in the area around campus.

“I’m surprised somebody doesn’t get run over every day,” Stritch said. “Some people are like, ‘I’ve been in class since 7 a.m. and just want to get home.’ They’re probably not paying attention. And people drive around like crazy.” 

In 2012, there were 30 traffic fatalities caused by auto-pedestrian collisions, and increased to 65 in 2022, according to data from the San José Police Department.
Pedestrian-related deaths in 2012 were 12 and later increased to 32 deaths in 2022, according to the same data.

Allana Ng, an environmental and urban planning fourth-year student, has had experiences with drivers while walking through the city.

“I almost did get hit once, but the driver ended up doing a hard brake,” Ng said. “​​Other times, even when I am walking, the driver can be impatient and will start accelerating even when I have barely crossed their path.”

Another auto pedestrian incident happened last year on Oct. 12, 2024. This incident was not reported by the university until two months later on Dec. 11, when they posted the news on their Instagram and Facebook pages.

“In the early hours of the morning on Saturday, Oct. 12, a San Jose State student was seriously injured by a hit and run driver at the intersection of South 4th Street and East San Carlos,” according to the SJSU Facebook and Instagram page.

Although the SJPD released surveillance footage of the incident on October 23rd while asking for the public’s help to identify the suspect, the university failed to release this information for months.

Sav Green, a third-year theater arts student, said they commonly hear of motor vehicle accidents around San José.

“The other day, I got cut off while driving down Santa Clara Street. There are a lot of accidents around campus and on freeways,” Green said. 

While the safety alerts and announcements help notify students about potential dangers, they may leave some uneasy. 

“The SJSU alerts are usually kind of vague. I think it makes a lot of people kind of anxious, including this last one,” Green said.“The other day, I got cut off while driving down Santa Clara Street. There are a lot of accidents around campus and on freeways.”

The Walk Don’t Walk Campaign is promoting pedestrian safety and was initiated to help negate these incidents from occurring, according to the SJSU 2025 Annual Campus Safety Plan Report.

There will be a monthly community meeting on Tuesday in Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Library, Room 225, from 1:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. 

“The purpose of the gathering is to discuss crime trends, department updates as well as issues affecting the campus and surrounding community,” the San José State UPD Instagram post said.