Street Racing Drivers Killed Elderly Woman on Wheelchair

At least two drivers are now facing criminal charges following the death of a 90-year-old woman in wheelchair whom they accidentally killed in West Covina, Los Angeles, California, reports said.

The drivers were identified as Vincent Lopez, 30, and Victor Hugo, 34. The two were allegedly street racing in West Covina Streets when one of the vehicles involved in the spontaneous race crashed into a van. As a result of which, the driver of the van was injured and was subsequently transported to a hospital, while its elderly female passenger in wheelchair was thrown from the van and died.

Investigation revealed that Lopez was driving the vehicle that struck the van. He likewise sustained injuries and remains hospitalized, according to reports.

Meanwhile, the other driver, Hugo, allegedly fled from scene but was later arrested.

Their arraignment was scheduled last Friday but so far, no other details are yet released.

As it is, street racing is prevalent in the streets of California. In fact, it has been an illegal practice in the United States from the 1930s until present. Moreover, since vehicles used in such street racing competitions typically lack professional racing safety equipments and their drivers lack proper safety gears and training in high-speed driving, injuries and fatalities are pretty common.

In addition, similar to what happened to this recent incident, street racing also puts ordinary drivers at high risk since the illegal races are held on public roads rather than in a racetrack facility, explained by a Los Angeles personal injury lawyer. In such regard, he hopes that further efforts will be made to curb incidences of such high-risk road activities.