California continues to crack down on accidents involving teenagers on e-bikes and e-motorcycles by making their parents accountable for their actions. On October 20, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office have charged the father and mother of a 13-year-old boy in California who passed away after he lost control of an e-motorcycle that was capable of reaching speeds of up to 62 miles per hour. The parents now face the possibility of going to jail if they are convicted on all charges.
13-year-old passed away in e-motorcycle accident in May
On May 7 at approximately 10 p.m., 13-year-old Benson Nguyen was “seen speeding, running red lights, and doing wheelies on his E-Ride Pro SS 2.0 E-Moto” when he lost control of the vehicle, according to a press release by the Orange County District Attorney’s Office.
At the time, the Garden Grove Police Department stated that it received a call from Life360, a mobile app that lets friends and family share their location with each other, concerning a possible traffic collision near Magnolia Street and Larson Avenue in the city of Garden Grove. When officers arrived on the scene, the teen was already unconscious and being loaded into an ambulance. The boy was taken to UCI Medical Center where he passed away.
Upon further investigation, officers uncovered that Benson had crashed into the raised center divider in the street and was ejected from his e-motorcycle, causing him to collide with a concrete light pole. According to the district county’s office, the teen’s Life360 app showed that he was going 43 miles per hour during the incident. They say that the E-Ride Pro SS 2.0 E-Moto is capable of reaching a top speed of 62 mph when it is switched to “Sport” mode.
Teen’s father and mother could face time in prison if convicted
The parents of the teenager, 56-year-old Vu Thanh Nguyen and 49-year-old Hong Cuc Thi Nguyen, were charged with child endangerment.
The district attorney’s office claims that Vu Thanh Nguyen had received multiple warnings about his son’s reckless riding and was aware that his son had been injured several times while riding a separate electric vehicle. In fact, they say that Benson had broken his leg six months before he died.
Despite this, the father purchased his son a “faster and more powerful E-Moto.” The E-Ride Pro SS 2.0 E-Moto ridden by the teenager, they say, is classified as a motor-driven cycle that would require a valid motorcycle license, license plate, insurance, DMV registration, and full motorcycle equipment.
Benson had posted many videos of himself performing leg switches and wheelies on his E-Moto on social media, including TikTok and Instagram.
As a consequence, Vu Thanh Nguyen has been charged with one felony count of child endangerment and one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. He faces a maximum sentence of six years in state prison if convicted of all charges. Meanwhile, Hong Cuc Thi Nguyen faces one misdemeanor count of child endangerment, which could result in a maximum sentence of one year in county jail if convicted.
Todd Spitzer, the Orange County District Attorney, who “has become the face of nationwide crackdowns on unsafe and unlawful e-bicycle and e-motorcycle riding” per SFGate, says the parents need to be held accountable.
He said, “Grief does not erase the decisions that were made by Benson’s parents to continue to allow their untrained and unlicensed 13-year-old to illegally ride an E-Moto after repeated warnings and repeated injuries and grief does not erase the need for accountability. When parents refuse to hold their children accountable and that refusal to parent results in unspeakable tragedy, then I have no choice but to hold parents accountable.”
The press release says that injuries from e-bikes and e-motorcycles are “now the number one reason children in Orange County end up in the emergency room.”
