OC mother charged with manslaughter after son’s fatal e-motorcycle crash

Orange County prosecutors have charged a woman with involuntary manslaughter after her 14-year-old son allegedly struck and killed an 81-year-old man with an e-motorcycle.

Tommi Jo Mejer was initially charged with child endangerment and accessory. She was arrested days after her teenager allegedly struck Ed Ashman while doing wheelies in the middle of the street in Lake Forest in April.

On Friday, Orange County District Attorney's Office added the charge of involuntary manslaughter — one day after Ashman, a Vietnam veteran and substitute teacher, died.

Prosecutors say the e-motorcycle the boy was riding is 16 times more powerful than an e-bike and requires a license and a minimum age of 16 to ride. They also say Mejer, in another incident last year, was warned by law enforcement of potential criminal charges if her son continued to illegally ride the bike.

Mejer is scheduled to be arraigned on May 21. If convicted on all counts she faces up to seven years and eight months in prison.

Since January, the Orange County District Attorney’s office has filed child endangerment charges against three parents for allowing their children to illegally ride e-motorcycles.