Blog Post

Los Angeles Hit and Run Pedestrian Accident Leaves Girl With Traumatic Brain Injury


July 08, 2008
Topic: Brain Injuries

Ricardo Tomas Guevara can try all he wants to defend his mindset as he fled from the scene of a pedestrian accident in Wilmington on April 9, leaving two young girls severely injured. But the fact is that what he did was not just illegal, but completely shameful and unethical. One of those girls, Kelsey Fukuda, suffered such severe brain injuries she has essentially been rendered paralyzed. Her right side is completely paralyzed, and she has painfully little movement in the left side of her body. She rarely opens her eyes, never speaks and nobody knows if she can recognize anybody. Kelsey is all of 14-years-old.

On April 9, Kelsey and her friend, Elizabeth Salas, were walking on a crosswalk at Pacific Coast Highways, and Ronan Avenue. Suddenly, a black car came speeding down the road and hit the two girls. Both girls were thrown up in the air, and smashed against the ground. Elizabeth escaped with a broken leg and other injuries to her head. Kelsey bore the brunt of the impact; her brain injuries were so severe, doctors had to open up a portion of her skull to ease the pressure on her brain. After extensive surgery and a series of complications, including seizures and blood pressure issues, Kelsey waits to begin to resume at least a sense of the life she had earlier. She will need extensive speech therapy, but experts say that even if there is any progress in that department, it will come only sometime in the future.

And what did Guevara do after he managed to hit two girls? He actually drove on to his sister's house, leaving the two bodies lying there in the middle of the road. When questioned about his reasons for fleeing the scene of the pedestrian accident, Guevara now has the audacity to claim that he didn't really leave the scene of the accident. No. He was actually driving to his sister's house to get emergency help. Because 911 wasn't available...? Or because his sister is a paramedic...? Or maybe Guevara thought the thing that came flying out of nowhere and landed on his windshield before slipping off and onto the ground was an animal of some sort, so he didn't see the need to stop and inspect the damage.

Whatever the reason for his flight, Guevara's having a hard time convincing anybody of his intentions. The fact is that this brash young man not only drive recklessly in a school zone - well above the specified speed limit for a school zone, police say - but he also neglected to at least save some face by getting them to a hospital on time. Instead, he left them there, battered and broken, one of them already unconscious, and he drove on to his sister's house to escape the law.

Hearings have concluded in the case, and Guevara is expected to be charged with leaving the scene of the pedestrian accident, with a maximum punishment of up to 4 years. That's right, It could be actually less than 4 years for this man. 4 years for effectively ruining a young girls' life, or at least leaving her a shell of her former self with very little hope for a full recovery. The Fukuda family should consider all their options to make sure that they get the compensation they deserve.

The Reeves Law Group is a law firm with offices throughout California dedicated exclusively to the representation of personal injury victims, including victims of brain injuries. Please visit our website at trlglaw.com. If you desire a free consultation on a personal injury matter, please call us at (800) 644-8000 or email us.


The California personal injury attorneys at The Reeves Law Group represent victims of accidents, injuries and wrongful death throughout California from our offices in Los Angeles County, Orange County, San Diego County, Riverside County, San Bernardino County, Ventura County, Fresno County, Kern County, Sacramento County, San Fernando Valley, Long Beach, Antelope Valley, Torrance, Glendale, Bakersfield, Santa Ana, San Jose, San Francisco, Oakland, Ontario, and Victorville.