Press Release

With Governor’s Signature, Ryan’s Law Becomes Reality

Sacramento, CA. Street racers and extreme speeders will face stricter criminal
prosecution after Governor Newsom signed Senator Stern’s SB 1472 this week. Ryan’s Law
is named after Ryan Koeppel, a Tarzana teenager killed by a repeat extreme speeder taking
a left on August 6, 2020. A number of other residents in the southland and California have
been killed by criminally reckless drivers, including:

  • Claudia Mejia Feb 7, 2015, a Calabasas mother of three killed by a reckless driver while she was headed to her daughters school
  • Colleen Wong, March 19, 2021, struck by an intoxicated street racer who lost control of the vehicle
  • Monique Munoz, Feb 17, 2021, hit by the seventeen year old driver of a Lamborghini SUV going nearly 100 mph
  • Valentina D’Assandros, Dec. 7, 2013, killed when a friend who was giving her a ride home crashed during a street race

“SB 1472 will not bring Ryan back, or any of those we love who have been killed by street
racers, side showoffs and extreme speeders,” Stern said.

This legislation pushes District Attorneys around the state to criminally prosecute drivers
who have killed others while street racing, speeding over 100 miles per hour, or
participating in a sideshow. By adding these factors to the section of the criminal code
addressing vehicular manslaughter, drivers will now face more serious consequences for
deadly driving, as part of a broader effort to make our streets safer for all.

According to LAPD data, in the first half of 2021, there were 500 reported sideshows in the
city of Los Angeles, an increase of 205 sideshows compared to the same time last year. The
California Highway Patrol also reports that street racing and sideshows have caused 264 crashes
statewide in the past five years. Of those crashes, 30 have been fatal and 124 have
resulted in serious injuries.

Senator Stern further explained,"What the California law now says is that DAs must
prosecute this kind of driving as the reckless and deadly conduct it is. No matter how high
paid your defense lawyer is, no driver who takes another’s life while street racing, doing
donuts in intersections, or driving over 100 mph on our city streets, should be able to avoid
criminal prosecution. Driving is not a game, and cars are not harmless toys to boost your
likes on Instagram. This is matter of life and death.”