Source: San Diego County Medical Examiner Report

SAN DIEGO, California – Jeffrey Marxen, M.D., lost control of his yellow 2005 Honda Goldwing motorcycle for unknown reasons and was killed in the 11900 block of Black Mountain Road, according to a San Diego Medical Examiner’s report.

Marxen, 60, who lieves with his wife in Carmel Valley in San Diego, may have failed to negotiate a curve in the roadway and went up on the curb and was ejected from his motorcycle about 9:51 p.m., the report said. He was wearing his helmet at the time of the crash. He struck a large blue metal canister protecting a water main line near the curb.

Passersby stopped to assist Marxen and stayed with him until San Diego police and fire officials arrived at the scene of the motorcycle crash.  After efforts were made to resuscitate him he was pronounced dead at the scene about 10:16 p.m.

Motorcycle Accident Statistics

There were 389 fatalities and 10,134 injuries to motorcyclists in California in 2009, the latest statistics compiled by the California Highway Patrol’s Statewide Integrated Traffic System Report.

In San Diego County, there were 39 motorcyclist deaths and 989 reported injuries to motorcyclists in 2009, according to the CHP report.

In the United States, motorcyclist injuries made a significant drop, down roughly 9% to 82,000 injuries reported in 2010 compared to 90,000 injuries the year before. Fatal accidents were slightly up, 4,502 deaths were reported in 2010 compared to 4,469 in 2009.

Helmets and Product Liability

Indeed, riding motorcycles is more dangerous than driving inside a car or truck, but California laws require riders to wear Department of Transportation approved helmets to help reduce the chances of serious injuries and death in the case of a motorcycle accident.

Sometimes these helmets can be defective or mislabeled as DOT approved helmets. In cases such as this, the victims of motorcycle crashes or their families may have grounds for a lawsuit against the manufacturer of the helmet.

Indeed, a woman who suffered a skull fracture with brain damage and permanent disability damage won $2.1 million in a products liability lawsuit on Oct. 24, 2006. Nancy Savage was riding as a passenger on a motorcycle driven by Jeffery McKinley on Interstate 80 in July 2003. McKinley crashed and she was thrown from the bike and struck her head.

She was wearing a helmet consisting of a black plastic shell with a chin strap and foam padding distributed by Daytona Helmets and purchased at Big Dawg Custom Cycles. She claimed that not only was McKinley liable for his negligent operation of the motorcycle, but so was Daytona Helmets and Big Dawg Custom Cycles because the helmet did not comply with DOT requirements for motorcycle helmets and the helmet did not adequately protect her.

The defense argued that the helmet was sold with warning labels that it was not DOT compliant and that it was not intended for motorcycling, but was a costume.

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The Seegmiller Law Firm can be reached at 1-855-ASK–WEST.  For over 30 years, the firm has been a staunch advocate for victims’ rights and has fought for clients involved in personal injury and wrongful death cases, including premises liability, product liability, auto accidents, dog bites, nursing home negligence, medical malpractice, at-work injuries and more.  The firm has offices in Irvine, Riverside, Los Angeles and San Bernardino, California, and Las Vegas, Nevada.