E-bike, e-motorcycle injuries are top reason for OC children's visits to ER, district attorney says
SANTA ANA, Calif. (KABC) -- Injuries involving e-bikes and e-motorcycles are the No. 1 reason for Orange County children's visits to emergency rooms, District Attorney Todd Spitzer said as his office continues its crackdown on young riders using the vehicles illegally.
"More than 100 deaths have been attributed to E-Bikes and E-Motorcycles in the United States, and injuries have spiked 430% in just the last four years in Southern California," Spitzer said in a statement Saturday.
Citing statistics from the California Statewide Integrated Traffic Record System, the D.A. noted that kids between the age of 11 and 14 accounted for 61.7% of e-motorcycle crashes, even though children under the age of 16 are legally prohibited from riding e-motorcycles.
OC mom appears in court after being charged in death of man, 81, struck by teen son on e-motorcycle
"Don't let that E-Motorcycle ride turn into an e-ride to the ER," Spitzer said in the statement, which was shared on his social media accounts. "Make sure the E-Bike your child is riding is legal for them to be riding - that they have the property safety training and gear - including a helmet."
OC's top prosecutor also issued a reminder that it is illegal in California to modify an e-bike to change its classification, including to make it go faster.
If the e-vehicle goes over 28 miles per hour, it's an e-motorcycle, which requires a licensed motorcycle rider over the age of 16, with insurance, DMV registration and a license plate, and a Department of Transportation-approved helmet, the D.A. said. E-Motorcycles, as defined by California law SB 586, are not street legal, he said.
On May 12, an Aliso Viejo mother made her first court appearance after being charged with involuntary manslaughter for allegedly allowing her 14-year-old son to ride an e-motorcycle before he fatally hit an 81-year-old man in Lake Forest in April.
Prosecutors contend that the 51-year-old Tommi Jo Mejer allowed her son to use the motorized cycle despite being warned of its dangers multiple times. Mejer is also charged with child endangerment and being an accessory after the fact to a crime, along with misdemeanor counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor and providing false information to a peace officer. She also faces an infraction for permitting an unlicensed minor under the age of 18 to drive a motor vehicle.
