Boy, 12, airlifted with serious head injuries after offroad vehicle crash in Menifee neighborhood

MENIFEE, Calif., — A juvenile remains hospitalized today after suffering serious head injuries as a result of an offroad vehicle crash in a Menifee residential neighborhood early Thursday evening, Feb. 10.

The accident, which involved one juvenile using a gas-powered quad to tow a second juvenile on a non-operating, plastic toy quad, happened on the 23700 block of Cypress Place, between Mountain View Place and Quail Place, in the formerly unincorporated Quail Valley area.

LEADING THE RCNS HEADLINES:

$1.5 million in damages reported after Riverside VW business, multiple vintage cars destroyed by blaze

Man arrested for DUI after wrong-way 91 Freeway crash in Riverside injures five people, three critically

Motorist dies in fiery SR-91 wreck near Corona after disabled vehicle struck from behind

Suspect, 53, shot at end of Hemet high-speed pursuit of stolen vehicle – Two in custody

Lake Elsinore motorcyclist who officials say ran red light ID’d after deadly crash

Local man fatally ejected after SR-91 rollover crash into guardrail in Riverside

City of Menifee police and fire personnel were dispatched to the scene around 5:30 p.m. after receiving reports of a traffic accident involving two offroad vehicles.

When officials arrived, they found a 12-year-old boy down in the roadway with an apparent head injury. Due to the severity of the child’s injuries a REACH air ambulance was launched to the scene while firefighter-paramedics began stabilizing the victim and preparing him for transport.

After a REACH helicopter landed in a nearby intersection, the victim was loaded and transported to the Riverside University Health Systems Medical Center’s trauma center in Moreno Valley. His condition at the time was listed as critical and officials have since updated that he remains hospitalized in stable condition.

A REACH air ambulance prepares to take off with a 12-year-old boy who suffered serious head injuries after an offroad vehicle crash in Menifee last night. RVCNews photo

During their subsequent investigation, officers determined the two juveniles, one male and one female, were riding two different quads when the accident occurred.

“The female juvenile was operating a 110CC quadricycle, while the male juvenile was operating an inoperative electric toy
quadricycle,” Menifee Police Sergeant Matthew Bloch has since explained.

“The juveniles tied the two quadricycles together and began towing the inoperative quadricycle when the towed quadricycle lost control and overturned,” Bloch continued, saying the victim – who was not wearing a helmet – was thrown from the toy quad, causing his head injuries.

SEE ALSO: RCNS EXCLUSIVE: Grieving family calls for justice after felon’s second fatal DUI crash kills Nuevo woman, 65

“The Menifee Police Department would like to offer our thoughts and prayers to the male juvenile and his family for a full recovery,” Bloch went on to say.

“We would also like to remind everyone that operating an off-highway vehicle on the roadway is dangerous and any operation of an off-highway vehicle should be done while wearing the proper safety equipment, including a helmet and riding gear,” he continued, adding, “Such operation should only be done in a safe manner and in an area where such riding is permissible.”

Anyone with additional information regarding this accident is asked to contact the Menifee PD Traffic Unit at (951) 723-
1690 or (951) 723-1565. Callers can remain anonymous.



Contact the writer: [email protected]

Trevor Montgomery, 50, moved in 2017 to the Intermountain area of Shasta County from Riverside County and runs Riverside County News Source (RCNS) and Shasta County News Source (SCNS).

Additionally, he writes or has written for several other news organizations; including Riverside County based newspapers Valley News, Valley Chronicle, Anza Valley Outlook, and Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle; the Bonsall/Fallbrook Village News in San Diego County; and Mountain Echo in Shasta County. He is also a regular contributor to Thin Blue Line TV and Law Enforcement News Network and has had his stories featured on news stations throughout the Southern California and North State regions.

Trevor spent 10 years in the U.S. Army as an Orthopedic Specialist before joining the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department in 1998. He was medically retired after losing his leg, breaking his back, and suffering both spinal cord and brain injuries in an off-duty accident. (Click here to see segment of Discovery Channel documentary of Trevor’s accident.)

During his time with the sheriff’s department, Trevor worked at several different stations; including Robert Presley Detention Center, Southwest Station in Temecula, Hemet/Valle Vista Station, Ben Clark Public Safety Training Center, and Lake Elsinore Station; along with other locations.

Trevor’s assignments included Corrections, Patrol, DUI Enforcement, Boat and Personal Water-Craft based Lake Patrol, Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement, Problem Oriented Policing Team, and Personnel/Background Investigations. He finished his career while working as a Sex Crimes and Child Abuse Investigator and was a court-designated expert in child abuse and child sex-related crimes.

Trevor has been married for more than 30 years and was a foster parent to more than 60 children over 13 years. He is now an adoptive parent and his “fluid family” includes 13 children and 18 grandchildren.