The death of 16-year-old Ashley Henderson in a Modesto car accident on February 12, 2010 has local residents concerned about traffic safety on Yosemite Boulevard. According to a news report in the Modesto Bee, Ashley was riding her bicycle across Yosemite at Western Avenue when she was struck by a pickup truck. Local residents are saying that this fatal bicycle accident would not have happened had the city put in a traffic light at that intersection.

My heart goes out to Ashley's family and friends for their tragic, untimely and devastating loss. I offer my deepest sympathies to them. Please keep this grieving family in your prayers.

Bicycle Accident Statistics

According to California Highway Patrol's 2008 Statewide Integrated Traffic Records System (SWITRS), there were 78 injuries, but no fatalities, involving bicycle accidents. In Stanislaus County as a whole, three fatalities and 157 injuries were reported as a result of bicycle accidents in 2008.

Dangerous Roadway Condition

Apparently, the California Department of Transportation had flagged the intersection for an investigation even before Ashley's death, based on the number of accidents at that intersection. Ashley's death was the second fatality at the intersection in the past nine years. In 2001, an 86-year-old man died when his daughter drove into the path of a pickup as she tried to cross the highway. The driver and her mother sustained severe injuries in that accident.

California’s Government Code section 835 provides that a public entity or governmental agency is liable for damages to an injured person or his or her family because of a condition of public property when the injured person proves that there was a dangerous condition on the public property at the time of injury; the injury was proximately caused by the dangerous condition; that the dangerous condition created a reasonably foreseeable risk of injury of the kind that occurred; and that the public entity had actual or constructive notice of the dangerous condition a sufficient time before the injury to have taken measures to protect against the dangerous condition.

Claim for Compensation

If it is determined that a dangerous intersection caused Ashley's death, her family will be able to file a wrongful death claim against the governmental agency responsible for maintaining that roadway. According to California Governmental Code section 911.2, any claim against a governmental agency must be filed within 180 days of the accident or injury. The best Modesto personal injury lawyers will always offer a free and comprehensive consultation to injured victims and their families.

The BISNAR|CHASE personal injury law firm is not representing any of the parties mentioned in this article at the time the article was posted. Our information source is cited in the article. If you were involved in this incident or a similar incident and have questions as to your rights and options, call us or another reputable law firm. Do not act solely upon the information provided herein. Get a consultation. The best law firms will provide a free consultation. We provide a free, confidential consultation to not at fault persons named in this article. The free consultation offer extends to family members as well.

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