The community is rallying around a 21-year-old woman who was struck and critically injured when an SUV sped into a crowd of “No Kings Day” demonstrators in downtown Riverside over the weekend, as police continue seeking the driver, who fled the scene, authorities said.
The hit-and-run took place shortly after 9 p.m. Saturday, following one of hundreds of large rallies against the Trump administration held to coincide with President Donald Trump’s birthday, as well as a military parade in Washington D.C. to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Army.
“During a protest in downtown Riverside, a black SUV sped toward a group of marchers on University Avenue and struck a woman before fleeing the scene,” the Riverside Police Department said in a written statement. “The victim remains in critical but stable condition.”
Alexa Carrasco, 21, was struck and critically injured by a hit-and-run driver while taking part in a “No Kings Day” rally in downtown Riverside on Saturday, June 14, 2025.
The collision took place after the official protest had come to a close and the crowd had shrunk to hundreds, down from thousands hours earlier, police and organizers said.
A detailed description of the vehicle was not available. A motive was not clear.
“We’d like that driver to contact us,” Riverside police spokesman Ryan Railsback told ABC Los Angeles. “We’d like to know their side of the story. They did flee the scene, and someone got seriously injured, but we want to talk to them and figure out their side. We still don’t have all that information.”
“There were a couple hundred people marching in the area when the incident occurred,” the police statement said. Any witnesses, anyone with video of the incident, or anyone with information was urged to come forward.
Riverside community rallies around victim
An online fundraiser established on GoFundMe.com to help the victim, Alexa Carrasco, had garnered more than $43,000 in community donations Monday afternoon.
Leslie Hernandez, who set up the fund, said she witnessed the collisions.
“[Carrasco] was peacefully protesting with me at the No Kings protest in Riverside, California, standing up for a cause she deeply believed in,” she wrote. “A car violently rammed through the crowd, and Alexa was tragically run over.”
The badly injured woman was being treated in an intensive care unit and would require surgery, the friend said.
“While we have limited information from doctors at the moment, we know her recovery will be long and incredibly difficult,” according to Hernandez.
“Alexa is loving, outgoing, and full of life,” the friend added. “She’s the kind of person who always shows up for others, and she was so proud to be out there using her voice. She did not deserve what happened to her.”
Anyone with information was urged to contact Riverside police Detective Mike Smith at MikeSmith@RiversideCA.gov or (951) 353-7103, or Detective Nic Cantino at NCantino@RiversideCA.gov or (951) 353-7104.
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Woman critically hurt in hit-and-run at Riverside ‘No Kings Day’ protest