Michael Williams, 31, was charged with manslaughter and drunk driving for allegedly running over retired KTVU news director Fred Zehnder.
OAKLAND — The Alameda County District Attorney’s office has filed manslaughter and drunk driving charges against the man who allegedly struck and killed former KTVU news director Fred Zehnder in a cross walk in Alameda.
Michael Williams, 31, of Hayward, was charged last November with felony vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. He posted bail in December, and is scheduled for an arraignment hearing Monday, court records show. Williams allegedly struck 87-year-old Zehnder with his truck on the 2200 block of Lincoln Avenue in Alameda, at around 10 p.m. on June 27, 2021. Police said at the time Williams stayed at the scene and dialed 911.
In court records, police said Williams refused field sobriety tests, but investigators determined he’d been at a local bar that night, where he’d been served four beers and four shots of whisky over a three-hour stay.A native of Lakeport and graduate of Humboldt State University, Zehnder worked for 21 years at KTVU until his retirement in 1999.