Articles Posted in Car Accidents

According to My Valley News, Early in the morning on May 19, 2017, around 12:45 am, several witnesses called 911 to report a crash at the intersection of Van Buren Boulevard and King Avenue in Riverside, California. Riverside Fire and Police Departments responded, and upon arriving at the scene, found parts of the vehicle spread across the road. First responders also found a white Toyota Avalon with significant damage to its front side.

The passenger of the wrecked Toyota was alive, albeit barely, and had suffered severe, traumatic injuries in the Riverside car accident. He was later identified as 21-year-old Prince Deavon Armony Franky Ketcha. The medics transported Mr. Ketcha to Parkview Community Hospital Medical Center, and within one hour, hospital staff pronounced him dead. The driver of the vehicle, who was seen walking after the accident, suffered only minor injuries.

California Highway Patrol Sergeant Eugene Norris said that the Toyota had been driving at a high rate of speed when it drifted to the right of the road and ran directly into a traffic signal pole. The cause of the crash remains under investigation, and Sgt. Norris said that alcohol or drug intoxication have not yet been ruled out as contributing factors in the accident.

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According to NBC San Diego, a tragedy occurred on Mother’s Day when a Ramona woman was killed in a wrongful death car accident on San Vicente Road. The woman—Jessica Foderingham, aged 32—was eight months pregnant at the time of the crash. She had just gotten married last August.

Around 6:46 pm, Foderingham was driving a Dodge Dart when another car—a 2011 GMC Yukon—struck her from the back. The collision pushed Foderingham’s Dodge into a center divider area, where it then collided with a tree. She died at the scene as a result of injuries from the rear end crash.

The driver of the Yukon fled the scene. He was later identified by California Highway Patrol as 44-year-old Andrew Milonis. Milonis, after leaving the scene of the collision, parked his car and hired a Lyft. The Lyft driver, Kyle Gammon, noted that Milonis appeared distraught. The driver actually passed by the scene of the accident on his route. He asked Milonis if Milonis had crashed there, and Milonis denied it.

Milonis was dropped off by the Lyft driver at the Turkey Inn Bar, where officers then arrested him. He was booked into the local jail, where he was charged with driving under the influence causing death, felony hit and run, and vehicular manslaughter. NBC 7 later discovered that Milonis had been driving on a suspended/revoked license. His wife informed the news station that Milonis had suffered a traumatic brain injury in 2008, which may be a possible reason for his erratic actions.

Foderingham’s husband, a Marine, was overwrought with emotion, posting on Facebook: “My heart, my world, my best friend, was taken from me.”

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On May 9, 2017, a Highland crash tragically killed four members of the same family, including a girl and two boys. An adult in a second car was critically injured. Around 2:24 pm, at the intersection of Palm Avenue and Cypress Street, two cars collided. According to the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department, a gold Ford Taurus collided with a silver Acura TL. The crash caused the Taurus to roll over onto its roof and catch fire. It eventually became completely swallowed up by the flames.

ABC7 reported that, according to a witness, the Acura driver was trying to turn left when it was hit by the Taurus. The Sheriff’s investigators said that three Ford passengers died at the scene of the accident, while a fourth person escaped the burning vehicle but later died at the hospital. The Acura driver was hospitalized in critical condition.

A relative said that the deceased included an 83-year-old grandfather, a teenager, and two children, ages 7 and 8. She said that the children had just been picked up from school and were on their way home. The San Bernardino wrongful death accident is currently being investigated by the Major Accident Investigation Team at the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department.

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According to My Valley News, an early morning Riverside crash on Mother’s Day left one person dead and another critically injured. A California Highway Patrol (CHP) incident log showed that the driver of a silver sedan lost control of the car and rolled over multiple times. The car eventually landed at the bottom of a ramp. The incident happened on eastbound 91 Freeway near the on ramp for Fourteenth Street in Riverside, California.

Witnesses called 911 and told dispatchers that the sedan was smoking, someone had been thrown out of the car as it rolled, and a second person was still trapped inside the car. When officers arrived, they discovered a destroyed car, the ejected victim, and the second person trapped inside the wreckage. Medical personnel attempted to revive the ejected victim, but the injuries were too severe and unfortunately the person passed away at the scene.

Firefighters used the “Jacks of Life” to remove the person trapped in the sedan. That person was taken to a hospital in critical condition. The CHP is continuing to investigate the cause of the crash. Officers have not yet determined whether drugs or alcohol played a role in the accident.

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Around noon on Sunday, April 23, 2017, a single vehicle rolled over on Oceanside Boulevard in California. Witnesses called the Oceanside Police Department, who sent officers out to respond to the accident. When police officers arrived, they discovered the truck in the westbound lanes of Oceanside Blvd.

According to witness statements and the evidence present at the scene, the Toyota Tacoma truck was traveling eastbound on Oceanside Blvd. For a reason not yet determined, the driver lost control of the truck, over-corrected for the mistake, and hit the median in the center of the road. After striking the median, the truck rolled and landed in the middle of the westbound lanes of Oceanside Blvd.

According to news reports, the driver of the truck was identified as Adam Robey, 35-years-old. He escaped with minor injuries and was released after a brief hospital visit. The female passenger in the Tacoma, who was five months’ pregnant, was found partially ejected out of the passenger window. She was unconscious with a head injury. The passenger—35-year-old Carey Disanto of Oceanside—was flown to Scripps La Jolly. Her baby was delivered and immediately flown to Rady Children’s Hospital. Tragically, a few days later, Disanto succumbed to her injuries and passed away, and her baby girl passed away shortly after.

No charges have been filed against the driver, although Oceanside Police Department’s Major Accident Investigation Team is continuing its investigation into this wrongful death accident. If the driver of the Tacoma was negligent and his negligence caused the fatal accident, it is possible that the family of Disanto could file a wrongful death lawsuit. Disanto’s family would need to speak with a California wrongful death attorney to discuss the specific facts of the case and determine whether it would be possible to seek compensation for their daughter’s and granddaughter’s deaths.

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According to the Whittier Daily News, a La Mirada woman lost her life on Easter Sunday in a three-car crash in Cypress, California. The Cypress car accident took place at Katella Avenue and Valley View Street.  According to the coroner, the woman, Alexis Barragan, aged 22, died around 12:40 am and was pronounced dead at the scene. She had been a passenger in a car that was driven by Nicholas Sanchez-McCormick, from Whittier, California.

Through their investigation, the Cypress police officials determined that Sanchez-McCormick had been driving westbound on Katella and ran a red light. His car then crashed into two other vehicles. Cypress law enforcement concluded that Sanchez-McCormick had been driving under the influence of alcohol, and arrested him for vehicular manslaughter and felony drunk driving. At the time of the accident, Sanchez-McCormick already had a DUI case pending against him.

The investigation is still underway, but it appears that the Cypress accident and death were caused by a driver who was operating a vehicle under the influence. Ms. Barragan’s family will have the right to make a wrongful death claim against the driver. The victim’s family should hire a California personal injury attorney experienced in wrongful death claims to handle their claim.

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Kern County Sheriff’s deputies in Wasco took a 50-year-old man into custody under suspicion of driving while intoxicated and failing to yield the right of way after he caused a wrongful death car accident that killed one woman and injured two others. Just before 8 pm on March 30, three cars collided near Prospect Avenue and Highway 43 in Wasco, California.

According to police reports, a man driving a Ford Ranger pulled out in front of a female driver, who was driving a Honda Civic. Sadly, the crash killed the woman. 23ABC News reports that the Kern County Coroner’s office has identified the victim as Carolina Vasquez of Shafter. A 20-year-old man driving a Ford Expedition then crashed into the victim’s Honda. He was injured but he survived the crash. The man arrested was identified as 50-year-old Erwin De La Pena. Authorities are continuing to investigate.

Although the police investigation is ongoing, it appears that the accident was caused by a driver whose blood alcohol content exceeded the legal limit for drivers in California. If it turns out that the driver was intoxicated and caused the crash, the family of the victim would be able to make a wrongful death claim against the driver. The victim’s family would need to hire an experienced California personal injury attorney to determine what types of claims exist and to represent them in pursuing those claims.

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Early on the morning of March 12, 2017, at approximately 5:20 am, a Mini Cooper entered the freeway in Commerce driving the wrong direction. According to the California Highway Patrol, it then ran head-on into a van. According to KTLA, just prior to the accident, individuals had made reports of a wrong-way driver. At the time of the crash, the Highway Patrol had been on their way to the scene.

Sadly, three victims were killed in this California wrongful death accident, including the wrong-way driver and a driver and passenger of the van. The van’s driver— and passenger, a woman and man, as well as the Mini Cooper driver, a man, were all pronounced dead at the scene. According to ABC News, the two males killed were 29-year-old John Perez from Downey and 53-year-old Quanlinh Phillips from Santa Ana. Law enforcement officials did not release the identification of the female van driver, nor did they provide clarification on which person had been the driver of the Mini Cooper. Investigations are still underway as to the cause behind the wrong-way driving.

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Sunday evening, an apparent street race led to a violent crash and two people killed. The Palmdale car accident allegedly occurred when two vehicles were racing and one of the vehicles lost control and struck a traffic pole.

According to TheAVTimes, the two people killed were in a 2014 Chevrolet Camaro that was headed southbound on 25th Street East in Palmdale. The father was driving the vehicle and the daughter was in the passenger seat. The father, Manuel Paniagua, was 54 years old. His daughter, Vanessa Paniagua, was only 17 years old.

According to witnesses at the scene, the two vehicles were speeding and probably racing. The other vehicle possibly involved in the race drove away from the scene without stopping to render assistance to the occupants of the Chevy. The driver of that other vehicle faces possible criminal charges for being involved in a street race and for leaving the scene.