Bradley, CA, October 29 – A head-on collision between a Honda sedan and a Ford on Jolon Road left two drivers dead and three others hurt, according to the California Highway Patrol. Officers from the CHP’s King City office were called to the scene around 8:38 p.m. on Wednesday, October 28, in an area south of Heinsen Road. Both vehicles sustained major front-end damage, and the crash remains under investigation.
Bradley Head-On Crash on Jolon Road Kills Two Drivers, Injures Three
The California Highway Patrol said the Honda was traveling south at a high speed when it crossed the center line into oncoming traffic, striking the Ford in a head-on impact. The Honda’s driver was partially ejected in the crash and died at the scene, one of the two fatalities reported in the collision.
The Ford was carrying four occupants at the time of the crash, and all four were taken to nearby hospitals for treatment. The driver of the Ford was later pronounced dead at Natividad Medical Center. The three passengers in the Ford remained hospitalized with injuries described as ranging from moderate to major, accounting for the second fatality and the three injuries reported in the collision.
Investigators with the California Highway Patrol believe alcohol may have been a contributing factor in the crash. CHP King City officers are leading the investigation and have not said whether the suspicion of alcohol use applies to the driver of the Honda, the driver of the Ford, or both. No citations or arrests in connection with the crash have been reported by the agency.
Several details about the crash have not yet been confirmed by investigators. The California Highway Patrol has not released the names of the drivers involved, and the exact cause of the Honda crossing into oncoming traffic has not been determined. The conditions of the three injured passengers have not been updated beyond the initial description of moderate to major injuries, and the investigation remains open.
What the at-fault driver is required to carry, and why it often is not enough
Vehicle Code section 16056 sets California’s minimum liability limits, and they changed recently. For a policy issued or renewed on or after January 1, 2025, the minimum is $30,000 for injury to or death of one person, $60,000 where two or more people are hurt, and $15,000 for property damage. Policies written before that date may still carry the older minimum of $15,000, $30,000 and $5,000.
Those are floors, not typical limits, and a single hospital admission can exhaust the lower figure before any other loss is counted. Where the at-fault driver carries the minimum, the uninsured and underinsured motorist cover on the injured person’s own policy is often the part that matters most, and it is worth checking early rather than after the other insurer has made an offer.
The deadline that applies to a claim like this one
Code of Civil Procedure section 335.1 gives two years for an action for injury to, or for the death of, an individual caused by the wrongful act or neglect of another. The same two years covers an injury claim and a death claim; there is no separate, shorter period because someone died.
Who is entitled to bring a claim when someone is killed
Code of Civil Procedure section 377.60 decides who may bring a wrongful death action. The first group is the surviving spouse, domestic partner, children and the issue of deceased children, or, where there is no surviving issue, whoever would take the estate by intestate succession.
A second group may bring the action only if they were financially dependent on the person who died: a putative spouse and their children, stepchildren, parents, and the legal guardians of the person who died where the parents are deceased. Parents are in that second group, which is the part families are most often surprised by, because dependency has to be shown rather than assumed.
Talking to someone about it
Culver Legal represents people injured in collisions across California. A conversation about what happened costs nothing, and we work on a contingency fee, which means there is no fee unless we win. If we do not win, we do not pass the case costs on to you either.
Nothing on this page is legal advice about any particular case, and the facts of a reported collision often change as the investigation continues.
