An Oregon emergency room doctor who allegedly hit a pedestrian with his car, drove around the victim’s body and then showed up for work at a hospital has been sentenced to prison in a case that shocked the local community.
According to the Marion County District Attorney’s Office, 59-year-old Kenneth Kolarsky was sentenced Tuesday to 13 months behind bars for his role in the 2024 death of Nicolas Hernandez-Mendoza.
Prosecutors said the deadly crash happened on the evening of Dec. 26, 2024, as Hernandez-Mendoza, 44, was walking through a crosswalk along North Pacific Highway in Woodburn.
Authorities say Kolarsky struck the man with his vehicle and briefly stopped after the impact.
But instead of helping the badly injured pedestrian, prosecutors said the doctor drove around Hernandez-Mendoza’s unconscious body lying in the roadway and fled the scene.
The disturbing allegations became even more shocking when investigators reportedly discovered surveillance footage showing Kolarsky arriving at work roughly 20 minutes later at Legacy Silverton Medical Center, where he worked as an emergency physician.
Meanwhile, Hernandez-Mendoza was rushed to Salem Hospital with devastating injuries, including fractures to his pelvis and cervical vertebrae.
Doctors attempted emergency surgery, but he later died after surgeons were unable to stop severe internal bleeding from his spleen.
Authorities said Kolarsky was arrested in May 2025 following what prosecutors described as a “considerable investigation.”
The tragedy became even more heartbreaking after Hernandez-Mendoza’s daughter revealed her father had been preparing to meet his newborn grandson, Emilio, for the very first time just days later.
“What hurts the most is he never got to see his grandson,” his daughter, Kimberly Hernandez, reportedly said after the arrest.
A GoFundMe page was later created to help return Hernandez-Mendoza’s body to Mexico so he could be buried with family members.
During sentencing, prosecutors blasted Kolarsky’s actions and pointed to the irony of an emergency room doctor allegedly abandoning a dying man.
“Regardless of why the accident occurred, to leave the scene after striking someone with your vehicle is a callous disregard for human life,” Chief Deputy District Attorney Brendan Murphy said.
“That’s especially offensive when it is committed by a professional who takes an oath to ‘do no harm.’”
In addition to his prison sentence, Kolarsky will also serve 36 months of post-prison supervision.