Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer announced criminal charges this week against 12 parents accused of allowing their children to illegally operate high-powered electric motorcycles. The charges follow a series of incidents involving minors, including police pursuits, reckless driving, and fatal crashes. Under California law, children under 16 are prohibited from riding electric motorcycles, which possess motors more powerful than standard electric bicycles.
The prosecutions include the parents of 13-year-old Benson Nguyen, who died on May 7, 2026, after crashing his electric motorcycle in Garden Grove. Investigators reported the boy was traveling at 43 miles per hour when he lost control and struck a concrete light pole. His father, Vu Thanh Nguyen, faces a felony count of child endangerment and a misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, while his mother, Hong Cuc Thi Nguyen, faces a misdemeanor count of child endangerment.
Additional charges were filed against other parents following non-fatal incidents. On June 30, an 11-year-old riding an electric motorcycle with a 1200-watt motor—exceeding the 750-watt legal limit for e-bikes—collided with a pickup truck in Yorba Linda. His father, Alex Li, was charged with misdemeanor child endangerment. In Newport Beach, Hulin Guo and Xiaomin Wang were charged after their 17-year-old son allegedly led police on a 40-mile-per-hour pursuit on May 9. Prosecutors stated the parents had received repeated warnings and the boy’s previous vehicle had been impounded.
The scale of the legal consequences varies by the severity of the charges. Parents facing misdemeanor child endangerment or contributing to the delinquency of a minor could serve up to one year in Orange County jail if convicted. In cases where felony child endangerment is charged, such as the case of Maria Dolores Roehling—whose 9-year-old son was hit by a truck while riding an electric motorcycle in Yorba Linda—the defendant faces up to six years in state prison. A person convicted of these charges would notice the immediate impact of a criminal record, which can affect future employment, and the potential loss of freedom through jail or prison time.
The knock-on effects of these prosecutions may influence how other jurisdictions handle the rise of high-powered electric vehicles among minors. The cases highlight a distinction between electric bicycles, which are limited to 750 watts, and electric motorcycles, which require licensing that minors under 16 cannot obtain. As these cases proceed through the Orange County Superior Court, they set a precedent for holding parents liable for providing minors with vehicles that the law classifies as motor vehicles rather than bicycles. Further court dates and specific deadlines for the 12 charged parents were not reported.