Tag Archive for bicycling fatality

Man riding ebike killed by semi driver in Escondido Friday am; 12th San Diego County bike death this year, 8th SoCal death in 2 weeks

October 2, 2026 / / No comments

Another day, another bike rider killed on the mean streets of Southern California.

For the 8th time in the last two weeks, someone riding a bicycle in SoCal has been killed by a driver, this time in Escondido Friday morning.

According to multiple sources, the victim was struck by the driver of a semi-truck, apparently in the northbound lanes near North Centre City Parkway and Champagne Blvd around 5:50 am.

The victim, identified only as a man, was trapped under the massive truck, and unresponsive when San Diego County sheriff’s deputies arrived. He was taken to a local hospital, where he died.

A map shows North Centre and Champaign are the same north-south street paralleling the 15 Freeway on opposite sides of Deer Springs/Mountain Road. A street view shows a painted bike lane next to a 55 mph speed limit sign.

Video from the North County Chronicle shows the victim was riding an ebike with pedals, and was wearing a helmet, which would have done little to protect  against the massive truck — especially if the truck was traveling at that speed.

This is at least the 54th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 12th in San Diego County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , ,

40-year old man riding ebike killed on North Figueroa in Highland Park, where Gil Cedillo cancelled traffic safety project in 2014

October 2, 2026 / / No comments

Gil Cedillo killed a man in Highland Park Wednesday night.

No, the former CD1 councilmember wasn’t behind the wheel when a man riding an ebike was run down from behind on North Figueroa, but he might as well have been.

Because it was Cedillo who singlehandedly killed a fully funded and shovel-ready safety project to tame the deadly corridor in 2014, after a series of sham public meetings in which only opponents of the project were allowed to be heard.

Now yet another man has lost his life, exactly where traffic lanes should have been narrowed and bike lanes installed over a decade ago — just the latest in a string of violent collisions that have left at least five people dead since 2015, keeping the corridor on LA’s High Injury Network.

According to KABC-7, the victim, described only as a 40-year old man, was riding north in the right lane of the 4500 block of North Figueroa Street when he was rear-ended by the driver of a gray sedan around 11 pm.

The victim was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The driver remained at the scene.

Video from the scene shows a mangled ebike resting on the curb, but it’s not clear enough to tell what kind of bike it is, though other sources describe it as a bicycle.

There’s no way to say for certain that the victim could be home with his family tonight had Cedillo had not been elected to replace a termed out Ed Reyes. But he would have had a better chance if the safety project approved by Reyes had been allowed to move forward.

I honestly don’t have the words left to express the sadness and anger I feel right now, after writing about seven other fallen bike riders in the last 14 days.

But Gil Cedillo has this man’s blood on his hands, and I hope his loved ones allow him to lie in repose on Cedillo’s doorstep, figuratively if not literally. And I hope they have a damn good lawyer.

This is at least the 53rd bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 18th in Los Angeles County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , , , ,

45-year old Homeland man on bicycle killed by hit-and-run driver; 4th SoCal bike death in one week, third fatal hit-and-run

September 29, 2026 / / No comments

For the fourth time in less than a week, someone riding a bicycle has been killed by a motorist in Southern California.

And for the third time, the victim was murdered by a hit-and-run driver. Because that’s the right way to describe a conscious decision to leave someone to die in the street, even if the law doesn’t agree.

According to the Lake Elsinore-Wildomar edition of Patch, the victim was riding in Homeland, California shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday when he was run over and killed by a heartless coward who fled the scene without stopping.

And no, I never heard of Homeland before, either.

The victim, identified as 45-year old Homeland resident Juan Holguin, was riding his bike on Leon Road at Queen Palm Drive when the driver of a Gray Mazda 3 plowed into him at an unknown speed, and apparently an unknown direction.

Witnesses immediately reported Holguin down in the roadway, and he was taken to Riverside University Medical Center in Moreno Valley, where he died four hours later.

The suspect vehicle was found abandoned in a dirt alley approximately one-and-a-half miles from the crash scene with “damage consistent with the reported collision,” according to a CHP spokesperson, including visible “damage to the passenger side of the front windshield.”

There is a 35 mph speed limit on Leon Road, but the straight, wide-open roadway, just half block south of California Highway 74, is engineered to encourage speeding.

Anyone with information is urged to call the CHP Temecula office at 951/466-4300.

This is at least the 52nd bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the sixth in Riverside County — the second in the county in just three-and-a-half days.

At least 17 of those SoCal deaths this year have been hit-and-runs.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Juan Holguin and all of his loved ones.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

Update: Man riding bicycle killed in Paramount hit-and-run, 3rd SoCal bike death in 3 days, 16th bicycling hit-and-run death this year

September 25, 2026 / / No comments

What is a human life worth?

About four sentences, evidently.

That’s all KABC-7 devoted to reporting that a man riding a bicycle was killed by a hit-and-run driver in Paramount Thursday night. According to the station, the victim, who was not publicly identified, was riding near the Rosecrans Boulevard onramp to the 710 Freeway around 11:40 pm Thursday.

Apparently, they mean Rosecrans Ave and the 710. Judging by the map, if the crash actually occurred in Paramount, that would mean the onramp to the northbound 710 from westbound Rosecrans.

There’s no word on how the crash occurred, or whether the victim died at the scene. Although the divided roadway means the driver was most likely turning right onto the freeway, and either struck the victim from behind, or right-crossed him as he was riding on the sidewalk.

There’s also no description of the heartless coward who drove away, or the suspect vehicle, and Sheriff’s investigators and the CHP say they don’t have any leads.

This is at least the 51st bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 17th we know about in Los Angeles County; this is also the third bicycling death in Southern California in the last three days.

At least 16 of those SoCal deaths have been hit-and-runs.

Update: The victim has been identified as 54-year old Melchor De la Torre. 

My News LA reports De la Torre’s body was found on the onramp to the 710, but he may have been struck while riding on Rosecrans, and knocked onto the onramp. 

There’s still no description of the suspect or the vehicle. 

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Melchor De la Torre and his loved ones, who deserved better.

 

 

 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

Man riding bicycle killed by semi-truck driver in apparent right hook in Riverside Tuesday morning, 50th known SoCal bike death this year

September 25, 2026 / / One comment

Another day, another bike rider killed on the mean streets of Southern California.

Less than 34 hours after a man riding a bicycle was killed in a San Diego hit-and-run, another bike-riding man was killed by a semi driver in Riverside. But at least this time, the driver stuck around.

According to My News LA — since the Riverside paper of record seems to think stories than can be readily found elsewhere should be hidden behind a paywall — the victim was struck by the driver at 10:25 am Thursday at Indiana Ave and Jefferson Street, just south of the Riverside (91) Freeway.

A police detective reports the driver was turning right from Jefferson onto eastbound Indiana when the truck hit the bike rider in an apparent right hook. The victim, who has not been publicly identified, died at the scene.

Or as the detective put it, the “bicyclist and trailer collided,” as if no one was responsible for putting that trailer into the victim’s path.

To their credit, the driver immediately stopped following the collision and remained at the scene, as both the law and basic human decency require.

The victim’s mangled mountain bike can be seen lying in the street afterwards, next to markings indicating the track’s pathway as the driver turned. There is a bike lane on Jefferson, though it’s used as a parking lane for the local Toyota dealer.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Major Accident Investigation Team of the Riverside Police Department at 951/826-8723.

This is at least the 50th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the fifth in Riverside County.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones. 

 

 

 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

45-year old man killed by hit-and-run driver in San Diego’s Egger Highlands, at least 11th bike death in San Diego County this year

September 23, 2026 / / No comments

Yet another Southern California bike rider has been killed by yet another hit-and-run driver.

But the San Diego press didn’t even care enough to do more than retype the police press release, if that. Let alone try to get anymore information.

According to multiple, nearly identical reports, the bicyclist was killed early Wednesday morning in San Diego’s Egger Highlands neighborhood.

And frankly, if you read one of those links, you’ve read them all.

The victim, identified only as a 45-year old man, was riding a mountain bike in the eastbound bike lane on the 1500 block of Palm Ave when he was struck by the driver around 1:15 am. The driver reportedly veered right into the bike lane to strike the victim from behind.

The driver fled the scene, leaving the man behind to die in the street.

There’s no word on whether there were any witnesses. There’s also no description on the suspect vehicle, which way the driver fled, or any word on the heartless coward behind the wheel.

Anyone with information is urged to call the Traffic Division of the San Diego Police Department at 858/495-7800 or Crime Stoppers at 888/580-8477.

This is at least the 49th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 11th in San Diego County. At least 15 of those SoCal deaths have been hit-and-runs.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and his loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , ,

13-year old boy killed riding ebike in Menifee Monday, collateral damage in a police chase for a non-violent property crime

September 17, 2026 / / No comments

Southern California’s terrible, horrible, no good, very bad few days continued in Menifee on Wednesday, where a 13-year boy became collateral damage in a police chase.

And yes, he was riding an ebike. And no, it really doesn’t matter what kind of an ebike it was, because the kid apparently did nothing wrong, and his ebike was not a factor in the crash.

Multiple sources are reporting that police in Menifee responded to a report of a burglary in progress on the 27000 block of Hemingway Court around 4:54 pm Monday.

A car driven by a woman believed to be involved in the burglary was seen leaving the area, and fled when the cops attempted to pull her over.

The driver was headed west on Holland Road at a high rate of speed when she ran the red light at Holland and Evans Road, striking the boy, who was riding north on Evans Road.

The victim, identified as 13-year-old Menifee resident Cody Villatoro, died at the scene, despite the efforts of police and paramedics.

The driver continued to flee until her car became disabled, at which point police arrested the woman, 21-year old Temecula resident Melody Valdez, on suspicion of evading police and homicide, among other charges.

So let’s repeat. Villatoro was riding with the green light, and apparently did nothing wrong other than share the planet with a driver wanted by police for a nonviolent property crime. But now he’s dead, because of a driver’s bad decision to flee and the cops’ choice to continue the chase.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Detective Garcia of the Menifee Police Department at Ogarcia@menifeepolice.org or call 951/723-1641.

A crowdfunding campaign has raised over $17,000 of the $20,000 goal.

Our beloved 13-year-old Cody Valentino Garcia Villatoro was taken from us far too soon. He was a kind, loving, and joyful child who brought happiness wherever he went. He had such a beautiful spirit and a way of making the people around him smile. Sadly, his life was cut short when he was hit by a car that was being pursued by authorities. Our family is devastated by this unimaginable loss. We would deeply appreciate any help, no matter how small, to help our family in these incredibly difficult time. If you are unable to donate, sharing this message and keeping our family in your thoughts and prayers means more to us than words can express. Thank you for helping us honor and remember our sweet Cody Valentino Garcia Villatoro.

This is at least the 48th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the fourth we know about in Riverside County. At least 14 of those SoCal deaths have been hit-and-runs.

This comes in addition to two 14-year old boys killed when they were struck by an 88-year old driver in Riverside on Tuesday, August 25, while one was riding an e-scooter and the other was on an e-motorbike; they both died of their injuries last week.

And a 52-year old man was killed in Carson on Friday when he was struck by a driver while riding either a motorcycle or a bicycle. Because those two are so easily confused.

Maybe tomorrow we can get back to our usual business, if drivers will just stop killing us for a few days.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Cody Valentino Garcia Villatoro and all his family and loved ones. 

 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

68-year old Long Beach man killed by semi driver in apparent right-hook hit-and-run 2 weeks ago, public not told until now

September 17, 2026 / / 3 comments

Sometimes, I don’t even know what to say.

A bad day Tuesday on the streets of Southern California, followed by a worse day yesterday.

Tuesday, it was news of a grandfather killed by a driver in El Monte while riding the ebike he just got for his birthday, followed by two people on a Metro bus killed by a speeding, red light-running driver in Chatsworth, who has been charged with two counts of murder.

Then a helicopter reporting on the crash for KNBC-4 and Telemundo fell from the sky, killing both people on board and an unfortunate bystander from Guatemala on the ground.

Then the first news to pop up yesterday was a Long Beach man killed in a right-hook crash by a hit-and-run truck driver, in what oddly wasn’t called a hit-and-run. That was followed by a 13-year old on an ebike killed by a driver fleeing the police in Menifee.

And just as I started to write this, news broke of a pedestrian killed when he was struck by three separate drivers in Long Beach Sunday, two of whom fled the scene.

But at least I don’t have to write about that one.

All this just days after LA advocates stormed City Hall on Tuesday with a demand to declare a State of Emergency on Traffic Violence, which I’d much rather be writing about.

And yes, I recognize the irony in being unable to write about a demand that drivers stop killing us because drivers won’t stop killing us.

Sigh.

So let’s start with the tragedy in Long Beach, if only because it happened first.

The Long Beach Post reports that a 68-year old Long Beach man, whose identity has not been made public, was struck by the driver of a semi-truck as he was riding on the sidewalk on PCH near Canal Ave on September 4th.

Yes, two weeks ago, and we’re just now finding out.

The crash occurred shortly after 11 pm as he was riding west on the south sidewalk, which should have been the safest place to ride along SoCal’s killer highway, but wasn’t. Because as he approaching a parking lot driveway, the semi driver pulled out from the parking lot, and turned right directly in front of him.

The victim stopped his bike, but trailer of the semi still struck him, knocking him to the ground — and presumably, under the truck’s rear wheels.

He was taken to a hospital, where he died a day later, according to My News LA, although the medical examiner didn’t bother to inform the Long Beach Police Department until September 10th.

And they still didn’t tell us for another week.

Nearly two full weeks after the collision, they still haven’t found the driver, and there is no description of the truck. Yet for some reason, the cops aren’t calling this a hit-and-run, apparently on the questionable assumption that the driver may not have been aware he hit someone.

My News LA reports the driver was leaving a restaurant parking lot; the only restaurant on the south side of that block is the Golden Star Restaurant at 1560 PCH.

Anyone with information is urged to call LBPD Detective Paredes at 562/570-7358; anonymous tips can be made through Crime Stoppers at 800/222-TIPS (8477).

This is at least the 47th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 16th we know about in Los Angeles County. At least 13 of those SoCal deaths have been hit-and-runs.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for the victim and all his loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , , , ,

48-year old father and grandfather Esteban “Steve” Martinez killed by driver in El Monte ebike crash

September 16, 2026 / / No comments

A man was killed by a pickup driver while riding an ebike in El Monte Monday night.

But what happened still isn’t clear. Nor is it clear whether the victim was riding a ped-assist bicycle, or some other kind of electric bike.

To be honest, I wasn’t planning to write about this crash, because the mangled bike lying in the roadway appeared to be very heavy with wide fat tires, looking more like an electric motorbike than a bicycle.

But video from KCBS-2 clearly shows the bike had operable pedals, so the victim, identified as 48 year-old Estaban Martinez, could have been riding an electric bicycle when he was killed.

All we know for certain is that Martinez, who went by Steve, was found lying unresponsive on the sidewalk on the on the 4100 block Richwood Ave near Bryant Road around 10:45 pm Monday, with his bike and shoes in the street next to him.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, despite the efforts of paramedics.

The pickup driver remained at the scene until she was taken away by police, possibly for blood alcohol test, according to the station.

Unfortunately, that’s all we know with any certainty at this time. Neighbors say Richwood and Bryant has been a problem intersection for some time, with motorists frequently running the stop sign.

Although KABC-7 somehow conflates this tragedy with Sunday’s takeover of the 6th Street Bridge in Boyle Heights in which police confiscated 78 electric minibikes illegally ridden by teenagers, as if there’s no difference between what Martinez was riding and a mini motorbike.

There is a name briefly visible on the side of the bike as it was loaded onto a truck to be taken away, but I’ve been unable to make it out, even with magnification.

Family members remembered Martinez as the father of five children, aged 7 to 30, and a proud grandfather.

According to KCBS,

“He was just so loving. He joked around a lot, played with the kids a lot,” said Martinez’s sister, Josefina. “When we had parties, he was always the one interacting with the kids. The kids loved him; my kids love him.”

They say that Martinez had just gotten the e-bike for his birthday recently, and that he had left his home a few blocks from the crash Monday night to visit a friend.

In the end, maybe it doesn’t matter what Martinez was riding. Because once again, a loving father is gone and a family has been violently ripped apart because the victim chose to travel on two wheels instead of four.

Anyone with information is urged to call the El Monte Police Department Watch Commander at 626/580-2109.

This is at least the 46th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 15th we know about in Los Angeles County — a number that is probably far higher, since the LAPD has stopped publicly reporting most traffic deaths.

My deepest sympathy and prayers for Steve Martinez and all his family and loved ones. 

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , , ,

14-year old San Diego boy killed by driver while riding Class 2 ebike in Pacific Beach Saturday night

September 14, 2026 / / 2 comments

Every traffic death is a needless waste of a human life.

It’s even worse when it’s a kid. And maybe it doesn’t even matter if he was on a legal ebike or not, because the result is the same.

At least, that was the case Saturday night when a 14-year old boy was killed riding an ebike in Pacific Beach.

A number of sources are reporting that the boy was riding on Olney Street at Balboa Ave in the San Diego neighborhood when he allegedly went through a red light around 9:20 pm, and was struck by a 38-year old driver headed west on Balboa.

The victim, identified as Owen Harris, an 8th grade student at Pacific Beach Middle School, died after being taken to a hospital.

The driver remained at the scene following the crash, and cooperated with investigators.

And no, CBS8, he was not struck and killed by a Tesla. Whether or not the driver was at fault, the car had one. As we’ve discussed many times before, whether or not Harris ran the red light depends a lot on whether there were any independent witnesses who saw the crash, other than the driver who killed him.

Harris was also riding a legal ped-assist ebike — or at least an ebike that was sold as one. The website for the pink Zooz ebike he was riding stresses that they are sold as Class 2 ebikes with a maximum speed of 20 mph.

Although it’s not hard to find instructions online for how to easily “uncork” at least some of their ebikes to exceed the legal speed limit.

But again, whether the bike was uncorked or otherwise does not change the outcome in any way. Or the tragic loss of a young man with virtually unlimited possibilities.

This is at least the 45th bicycling fatality that I’m aware of in Southern California this year, and the 10th we know about in San Diego County — an average of more than one a month.

My deepest sympathies and prayers for Owen Harris and all his family and loved ones. 

Thanks to Phillip for the heads-up.

Category: Injuries and Fatalities / Tags: , , , ,
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