The Orange County District Attorney’s Office announced Wednesday child endangerment charges against six parents who allegedly allowed their children to illegally ride electric motorcycles.
The charges come a day after the parents of a 13-year-old boy who died in an electric motorcycle crash in Garden Grove were charged. Benson Nguyen of Santa Ana died after crashing his electric motorcycle into a light pole before 10 p.m. on May 11, according to the DA’s office.
Those recently charged include the following:
Alex Li has been charged with one misdemeanor count of child endangerment. Prosecutors say on June 30, his 11-year-old son was riding an electric motorcycle in Yorba Linda when he collided with a pickup truck, leaving him with broken bones and an arterial bleed.
Maria Dolores Roehling has been charged with one felony count of child endangerment and an infraction. Her 9-year-old son was speeding on his electric motorcycle when he was hit by a pickup truck in Yorba Linda on May 23, according to the DA’s office. The child’s Instagram accounts allegedly show him doing wheelies on residential streets and posting about an electric motorcycle crash he had a few weeks before the May 23 incident.
Dan Mircea Rezmives has been charged with one misdemeanor count of child endangerment, one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and an infraction. Despite an officer previously warning Rezmives and his 12-year-old son that it was illegal to ride an electric motorcycle on city streets, an Orange officer saw the child riding an electric motorcycle on a public street while Rezmives was on a bicycle on March 22, prosecutors said.
Hulin Guo and Xiaomin Wang have both been charged with one misdemeanor count of child endangerment, one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and an infraction. The DA’s office said the couple had been repeatedly warned about their 17-year-old son’s reckless driving and that his electric motorcycle had been impounded and sold before. In the latest incident, on May 9, the son allegedly led Newport Beach police on a pursuit and rode around pedestrians in sidewalks and in the wrong direction on public streets.
Tuan Nguyen has been charged with one misdemeanor count of child endangerment. On April 8, prosecutors say his 13-year-old son led Garden Grove police on a chase while riding an electric motorcycle, speeding up to 40 miles per hour, running red lights and going the wrong way. The boy eventually crashed into a police vehicle, ending the pursuit, according to the DA’s office.
“We don’t want to have to prosecute parents – we want to save kids’ lives,” Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer said in a news release. “When parents refuse to parent and tell their kids ‘no’ when it comes to riding something that is dangerous and illegal, then I have no choice but to hold parents accountable and file criminal charges.
“Kids are getting seriously injured and killed and I refuse to allow another child to be hurt or killed because I didn’t do everything I could to send a message that these vehicles are not child’s play. If you’re going to hand the keys to a deadly weapon to your child, then be prepared to face the consequences of your actions.”
In addition to the six parents, 33-year-old Jose De Jesus Ramirezbarragan has been charged with one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor in connection with an incident involving his 15-year-old brother. He’s accused of letting his younger brother ride his electric motorcycle on May 27. That day, the 15-year-old led La Palma police on a pursuit, during which he rode 40 miles per hour, ran red lights and nearly collided with cars before crashing into bushes, the DA’s office said.
The DA’s office credits DA Todd Spitzer’s RIDE SAFELY, or Smart Accountability for E-Bikes and E-Motos and Law Enforcement for Youth, Unit for the recent filings. The unit was created to reduce e-bike and electric motorcycle injuries, which are now the No. 1 reason Orange County children go to the emergency room, the office said.
