NEWS RELEASE
At approximately 6:40 PM on August 12, 2022, officers from the Oxnard Police Department and E.M.S. personnel responded to a call for service regarding a traffic collision involving a vehicle and a pedestrian. The collision occurred on West 7th Street at South “A” Street, in downtown Oxnard. The pedestrian, former Oxnard City Council Mayor Pro Tem, and Chair of the Ventura County Board of Supervisors Carmen Ramirez, was transported to a local hospital but unfortunately did not survive her injuries.
During the investigation it was established that Antonio Flores Jr., the driver and sole occupant of his vehicle, was driving westbound in a 2020 GMC Sierra 2500 on Seventh Street. Flores proceeded towards the four-way intersection at South ‘A’ Street, which is regulated by stop signs in all directions. Flores came to a complete stop at the intersection, then yielded to another vehicle that was headed southbound on ‘A’ Street.
Flores then proceeded westbound on Seventh Street through the intersection, and struck Supervisor Ramirez. Supervisor Ramirez was crossing Seventh Street in a southbound direction, in the west crosswalk at the intersection. She was the only person in the crosswalk at the time of the collision. Investigators located and secured video evidence that corroborates this information.
Flores remained at the scene and cooperated with investigators. Officers evaluated Flores for impairment and did not believe that alcohol and/or drugs were a factor at the time of the collision. The preliminary results of Flores’ toxicology report provided by the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office Forensic Services Bureau show that alcohol and/or drugs were not present.
Investigators are working to determine the possibility and/or extent that sunlight glare contributed to the driver’s visibility, as Flores was proceeding westbound, directly towards the setting sun. Traffic investigators continue to conduct a thorough analysis into the details of the collision and are working to establish all primary factors and any potential related factors.
Anyone who has information regarding this collision is urged to contact Corporal Andrew Pinkstaff at (805) 385-7750 or via email at [email protected]. Also, anyone with information regarding this case can contact the Oxnard Police Department at (805) 385-7600.
TELL YOUR FRIENDS ABOUT CITIZENS JOURNAL Please keep us publishing – DONATE
While is is sad that a contributing member of our society died all too soon, it has been my observation that pedestrians in SoCal take the “pedestrian right of way” far too casually and depend upon the driver to exercise all caution while the pedestrian throws caution to the wind.
During a driver’s education class the instructor talked about that problem. His rhetorical questions was, “How effective do you think those white line are in stopping a moving motor vehicle?”
The presence of the white lines on the pavement are not some invisible force field that prevent the motor vehicle from entering the crosswalk and striking the pedestrian.
With the large number of drivers on the road who have had their licenses revoked, suspended or never bothered to apply for a license; the large number who drive under the influence of prescribed drugs or unprescribed drugs or alcohol, it certainly behooves pedestrians to be more cautious about crossing streets. Yes, looking both ways is the first step. keeping an eye on the motor vehicles that could prove dangerous to your safety is the next step. Looking both way and the proceeding to cross the street ignoring potential dangers is what leads to situations like this one.
Concern for one’s own safety demands that we continuously monitor motor vehicles that could, with little movement on their part inflict serious or deadly injury to our bodies. It is no contest. You will lose in every encounter with a moving vehicle. It doesn’t even have to be moving very fast. I don’t know why the motorist in this case didn’t see the pedestrian. If the sun blinded him, perhaps he should have proceeded more slowly until he had a clearer view of the roadway. Perhaps he glanced to his left or right at a critical moment. Perhaps he stepped on the gas to accelerate more vigorously than prudent. And I am confident that once stepping into the roadway, the pedestrian assumed that the motorist would see her and never bothered to continue to eyeball the truck whose obvious path was right at her.
And perhaps a combination of lack of attention on the part of both parties is what led to this untimely death.
Folks, you are going to lose any encounter with a moving motor vehicle. Do not assume that the driver is sober, sane and paying attention. Those are fatal presumptions on your part. You are responsible for your safety. It doesn’t do you a bit of good if your heirs collect a significant sum upon your demise unless that was your plan originally. Even if you survive, no amount of money can compensate you for the residual aches and pains that will be the result of a mano a mano confrontation with a heavy, slow moving motor vehicle. Be aware. Be alert. Be responsible for your own safety.