{"id":372823,"date":"2026-07-14T18:14:10","date_gmt":"2026-07-14T18:14:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/372823\/"},"modified":"2026-07-14T18:14:10","modified_gmt":"2026-07-14T18:14:10","slug":"sapd-briefly-searched-for-a-woman-after-getting-an-alert-her-family-found-her-dead-37-hours-later","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/372823\/","title":{"rendered":"SAPD briefly searched for a woman after getting an alert. Her family found her dead 37 hours later."},"content":{"rendered":"

SAN ANTONIO \u2013 When 21-year-old Jolie Pesina crashed her vehicle into Leon Creek on a November morning<\/a>, her iPhone immediately did what it was designed to do. It called 911. <\/p>\n

Records obtained by KSAT Investigates confirm Apple\u2019s Crash Detection system repeatedly provided a San Antonio emergency call taker with Pesina\u2019s precise latitude and longitude coordinates and an estimated search radius of two meters. <\/p>\n

KSAT Investigates<\/p>\n

Hard-hitting journalism from the KSAT Investigates team delivered straight to your inbox.<\/p>\n

However, San Antonio police officers did not respond to those exact coordinates.<\/p>\n

Instead, officers were sent to a nearby address along Southwest Loop 410, searched the area for less than 15 minutes and then cleared the call, dispatch audio confirms.<\/p>\n

Apartment surveillance footage shows SAPD officers searching near Pesina’s crash scene Nov. 17. (KSAT)<\/p>\n

Thirty-seven hours later, Pesina\u2019s loved ones used the same coordinates provided by Apple\u2019s emergency alert to locate her vehicle and her body.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe if they would have done their job they would have found her, but they didn\u2019t,\u201d Pesina\u2019s mother, Mercy Villarreal, said.<\/p>\n

A crash, an automated 911 call and exact coordinates<\/p>\n

Pesina was driving to work shortly before 6 a.m. on Nov. 17, 2025, when investigators said she crashed through a guardrail along Southwest Loop 410 before Palo Alto Road and into Leon Creek.<\/p>\n

Moments later, her iPhone automatically contacted 911.<\/p>\n

Audio obtained by KSAT Investigates captured the automated emergency message.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe owner of this iPhone was in a severe car crash and is not responding to the phone,\u201d the message states before providing Pesina\u2019s latitude and longitude.<\/p>\n

The coordinates were repeated multiple times during the call.<\/p>\n

However, the 911 recording confirms the call taker repeatedly talked over portions of the automated message.<\/p>\n

A dispatcher eventually relayed to officers a nearby street address: 12401 block Southwest Loop 410 eastbound lanes where officers responded. <\/p>\n

Officers searched, then moved on<\/p>\n

Dispatch records and police radio traffic show officers searched the area after being dispatched.<\/p>\n

Apartment surveillance footage obtained by KSAT Investigates shows officers driving back and forth in front of the complex along the highway \u2014 blocks from the crash scene \u2014 just after 6 a.m. <\/p>\n

At one point, an officer requested assistance from SAPD\u2019s helicopter unit to search the wooded area off the roadway.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t find anything on the roadway. Is there any way that EAGLE is available just to check the wooded area off the highway?\u201d an officer asked.<\/p>\n

The request was denied because the helicopter was not flying at the time, dispatch records confirm.<\/p>\n

Minutes later, officers ended their search after being informed that traffic cameras in the area did not show signs of a crash.<\/p>\n

Had officers responded to the exact latitude and longitude provided by Apple\u2019s alert, those coordinates would have placed them directly in Leon Creek where Pesina\u2019s vehicle and body were ultimately discovered.<\/p>\n

Expert: Crash detection can be a \u2018lifesaving tool\u2019<\/p>\n

Cody Breunig is a former police officer-turned-digital forensics expert who has extensive knowledge of Apple Crash Detection technology.<\/p>\n

He reviewed details of the case, including the 911 audio, for KSAT Investigates.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s baked into the hardware. It\u2019s based on thousands of hours of crash data that Apple has collected and trained their device on,\u201c Breunig said. \u201dQuite frankly, it\u2019s a lifesaving tool.”<\/p>\n

Digital forensics expert Cody Breunig said most emergency operators are taught to listen to automated emergency alerts. (KSAT)<\/p>\n

Breunig said emergency operators are generally trained to listen carefully to automated emergency alerts because they often contain critical location information.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost operators know to listen,\u201d Breunig said. \u201cThat\u2019s one of the biggest things we can do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Breunig said the case should prompt a review of what happened.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it\u2019s an opportunity for any individual who is in charge to look at and analyze what went wrong,\u201d Breunig said. \u201cIt\u2019s a sad situation all the way around. And the reality is, Apple tries to account for confusion that might happen when it\u2019s system calls (911).\u201d<\/p>\n

Family members followed the coordinates themselves<\/p>\n

As hours turned into more than a day, Pesina\u2019s family continued searching for answers.<\/p>\n

Pesina\u2019s loved ones repeatedly contacted law enforcement seeking information about the crash, after two of her relatives received the same Apple crash alert and coordinates.<\/p>\n

Using the coordinates from the alert, family members drove to that area of Southwest Loop 410.<\/p>\n

Jolie Pesina’s loved ones gather near the scene of her fatal crash on Nov. 18. (KSAT)<\/p>\n

At approximately 6:53 p.m. on Nov. 18 \u2014 37 hours after the crash \u2014 Pesina\u2019s boyfriend\u2019s father called 911.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe found the vehicle in a ditch,\u201d the hysterical caller told a dispatcher. \u201cWe came looking for her.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s deceased. She\u2019s deceased,\u201d the caller said as cries can be heard in the background.<\/p>\n

SAPD fought release of records<\/p>\n

KSAT Investigates obtained the 911 recordings, crash report and incident detail report earlier this year after SAPD attempted to withhold them from public release.<\/p>\n

City officials argued the records were related to a closed criminal case that did not result in a conviction or deferred adjudication, contained information protected by the Texas Transportation Code and contained information on a motor vehicle operator\u2019s license.<\/p>\n

The Texas Attorney General\u2019s Office in March ordered SAPD to release the requested records after the AG\u2019s office determined the information was related to a person who was deceased.<\/p>\n

SAPD released the audio recordings and written records in mid-May \u2014 nearly two-and-a-half months after the AG\u2019s ruling.<\/p>\n

The department declined requests to make a member of its administration available for an interview.<\/p>\n

SAPD officials did not answer questions from KSAT Investigates about whether any dispatchers, call takers or officers were disciplined in connection with the Pesina search or whether any procedural changes have been implemented since her November crash.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just feel like they failed her. And she was there by herself from Monday to Tuesday. And it really hurts,\u201d said Villarreal. \u201cThey could\u2019ve done more. They could have sent more policemen. They could have sent a helicopter. They could\u2019ve sent dogs.\u201d<\/p>\n

Autopsy findings<\/p>\n

Pesina died from blunt force injuries suffered in the crash, an autopsy released by the Bexar County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office shows.<\/p>\n

The autopsy report does not indicate how long Pesina survived after the crash. <\/p>\n

The report notes there was no evidence she drowned, since her head was above the water level when she was removed from the vehicle Nov. 18.<\/p>\n

For Villarreal, the unanswered questions remain difficult to live with.<\/p>\n

\u201cEven though she was gone, at least I could have held her hand,\u201d Villarreal said. \u201cAt least I could have kissed her. And I couldn\u2019t even do that. And it just hurts. It just hurts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more reporting on the KSAT Investigates page<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 by KSAT – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SAN ANTONIO \u2013 When 21-year-old Jolie Pesina crashed her vehicle into Leon Creek on a November morning, her…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":372824,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[4976,131920,82,84,83,632,4937],"class_list":["post-372823","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-san-antonio","tag-ksat-investigates","tag-leon-creek","tag-san-antonio","tag-san-antonio-headlines","tag-san-antonio-news","tag-sapd","tag-south-side"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372823","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=372823"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/372823\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/372824"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=372823"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=372823"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=372823"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}