Pedestrian Killed in 70th Avenue Crash in Mecca, CHP Says
A 39-year-old Mecca man died Thursday evening after he was struck by a vehicle while walking along 70th Avenue east of Cleveland Street in Mecca, according to the California Highway Patrol. The crash was reported at approximately 7:26 p.m. on September 10, 2026. Investigators say a white Honda Accord was traveling on 70th Avenue when it struck the pedestrian, who was walking in a westerly direction. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The Riverside County Coroner’s Office later identified him as Ramiro Gonzalez Jr.
According to KESQ, CHP investigators said alcohol did not appear to be a factor in the crash. They are still working to determine which portion of the roadway Gonzalez was walking in at the time he was struck. The driver of the Honda has not been publicly identified, and no citations or arrests had been announced as of the initial report. The collision remains under investigation by the CHP’s Indio office.
Pedestrian killed in 70th avenue crash identified as 39-year-old Mecca man
Where It Happened
70th Avenue east of Cleveland Street in the Mecca community of the Coachella Valley, Riverside County
What the Law Says
California Vehicle Code 21950 requires drivers to exercise due care for the safety of pedestrians and to yield the right of way to a pedestrian crossing within a marked or unmarked crosswalk. Even when the law calls for a driver to yield, pedestrians are also required to exercise due care for their own safety. Investigators in this case are trying to determine where within the roadway Ramiro Gonzalez Jr. was walking when the Honda Accord struck him, which will help establish how this statute applies.
Vehicle Code 21954 addresses situations where a pedestrian is on a roadway outside of a marked or unmarked crosswalk, requiring the pedestrian to yield the right of way to approaching vehicles. That duty, however, does not relieve a driver from exercising due care and reducing speed when a pedestrian is present on the roadway. Because CHP has not yet said whether Gonzalez was within a crosswalk, both a driver’s and a pedestrian’s obligations under California law could come into play in this investigation.
This summary is general information, not legal advice. Every case depends on its specific facts.
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