Missing 29-year-old Bay Area man found dead in submerged Tesla
A missing Rohnert Park man was found dead in his Tesla Model Y late last week following a 10-day search, according to authorities and family.
The body of 29-year-old Kale Gonick-Hallows was located Friday in the driver’s seat of the bright blue Tesla, which was submerged in the water off Schoolhouse Beach in Bodega Bay, Rohnert Park police said in a Tuesday news release.
Gonick-Hallows, who had been experiencing a mental health crisis, had been missing since he left his Rohnert Park apartment Jan. 5 and drove off in his bright blue Tesla Model Y during a strong storm. Automated license plate readers captured his vehicle as he traveled west in Bodega and then headed north on Highway 1 in Bodega Bay.
His mother, Gail Gonick-Hallows, reported him missing Jan. 6 and multiple agencies — including Rohnert Park, the Sheriff’s Office, California Highway Patrol and California State Parks — assisted in searching. Gail Gonick-Hallows, her husband and friends and community members also looked, mapping their routes that crisscrossed over west Sonoma County.
Early Friday, a drone from the Cal Fire Sonoma-Lake-Napa Unit, which had been requested as part of the search for Kale Gonick-Hallows, found a piece of the vehicle during a sweep near Schoolhouse Beach, Rohnert Park police Sgt. Casey Quinn said Tuesday. Rohnert Park authorities reached out to the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office’s helicopter, Henry-1, which further searched the area and spotted the Tesla in the water.
State Parks lifeguards dove into the water and found the vehicle and the body of a man, later identified as Kale Gonick-Hallows, in the driver’s seat. The divers pulled the body out of the Tesla, Quinn said. The vehicle remains in the water, as of Tuesday.
Authorities believe Kale Gonick-Hallows was involved in a crash near the north parking lot of Schoolhouse Beach, Quinn said. It likely occurred within the first few days he was missing.
Police are still determining the cause of the collision and how it played out.
Investigators have not found evidence of foul play.
Gail Gonick-Hallows said her son loved spending time in nature and would often walk through the local redwood trees or ride his Onewheel, an electric skateboard with one large wheel in the middle, in between the tall trees. He also enjoyed camping.
As a child, he was creative and energetic, she said. He would build “contraptions” using blocks, household objects, toys and tape.
“On airplane trips, all we needed to bring along was paper and tape to keep him busy,” Gail Gonick-Hallows said. “I still have beautiful pop-up birthday cards he made for me.”
As an adult, he loved pursuing more thrilling activities such as zip-lining and skydiving and enjoyed Electronic Dance Music concerts in San Francisco. He was curious about gadgets, such as iPhones and flying drones.
Kale Gonick-Hallows was a social justice advocate who volunteered for the San Francisco Pride parade many times and for the Ceres Community Project in Sebastopol, which provides tailored meals made for those facing a serious illness, his mother said.
He graduated from Sonoma State University in 2024 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology, earning highest honors, and had been applying for graduate school programs so he could eventually become a psychotherapist, like both of his parents.
If you or someone you know is struggling with feelings of depression or suicidal thoughts, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline offers free, round-the-clock support, information and resources for help. Call or text the lifeline at 988, or see the 988lifeline.org website, where chat is available.