S. Marine Corps captain, was walking home from work on April 16 when he was hit near Toledo Way and Ridge Route Drive in Lake Forest, bordering El Toro High School. Investigators believe the teen was performing wheelies on a Surron Ultra Bee electric motorcycle at the time.
The Surron Ultra Bee can reach speeds of 56 mph and weighs 187 pounds, making it 16 times more powerful than a standard e-bike, according to reports. The teen allegedly fled the scene, and Orange County Sheriff's deputies later discovered Ashman, who died of his injuries on Thursday. The exact cause of death has not been released.
An American hero who survived flying combat missions in Vietnam could not survive walking across the street in Lake Forest because of a 14-year-old child who was allowed to ride an e-motorcycle that he should have never been riding.
Mejer had been repeatedly warned about the dangers of allowing her son to illegally ride the e-motorcycle, according to the district attorney's office. Despite this, she admitted to purchasing the Surron for him and knew he drove it recklessly, officials said. When questioned by officials, Mejer allegedly denied that she or her son owned an e-bike.
In 2025, she contacted police to accuse someone of posting her son online riding the bike, though the relationship between that contact and the current case remains unclear. The specific warnings given to Mejer and by whom have not been detailed. Mejer was arrested on April 21 by the Orange County Sheriff's Department at the Lamoreaux Justice Center in Orange, according to authorities.
This mother essentially handed her 14-year-old son a deadly weapon, and despite multiple warnings of the dangers, continued to let him illegally ride an e-motorcycle until he finally killed someone.
She initially faced multiple misdemeanor charges and two felony charges, but those were upgraded on Friday to include one felony count of involuntary manslaughter, one felony count of child endangerment, one felony count of accessory after the fact to a crime, one misdemeanor count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor, one misdemeanor count of providing false information to a peace officer, and an infraction for permitting an unlicensed minor under 18 to drive a motor vehicle. If convicted on all counts, she faces up to seven years and eight months in state prison. Mejer is scheduled to be arraigned on May 21, 2026, at the Harbor Justice Center in Newport Beach, according to court records.
The current legal status of the 14-year-old son has not been disclosed. Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer condemned the mother's actions, saying she essentially handed her son a deadly weapon and, despite multiple warnings, continued to let him illegally ride until he killed someone. He added that an American hero who survived flying combat missions in Vietnam could not survive walking across the street in Lake Forest because of a 14-year-old child allowed to ride an e-motorcycle he should never have been riding.
I will prosecute you to the fullest extent of the law when you allow your children to ride illegal motor vehicles.
Spitzer also issued a warning to other parents that he will prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law when they allow their children to ride illegal motor vehicles. In California, e-motorcycle riders must be at least 16 years old and possess a motorcycle license, according to state law. 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, officials said.
In one case, a Yorba Linda father was charged after his 12-year-old son was critically injured running a red light on an e-motorcycle modified to go up to 60 mph, following warnings, according to prosecutors. That father faces a maximum sentence of six years in state prison if convicted. Ashman was described as the center of a beautiful family, a devoted husband, father of three, and proud grandfather, according to a GoFundMe page.
The evidence supporting the allegations that the teen was doing wheelies and fled the scene has not been made public.