So last night, I was on my way home after getting dinner at Subway. I was headed west on Michelson and came to a stop on Harvard right by the limit line. There wasn’t anyone else in the intersection aside from a car to my right, and another car going east on Michelson. I just remember thinking how dead the streets were that night. I got ready to move after I noticed the car across from me started moving. However, I was not prepared for what would happen next. I had to witness one of the worst things I’ve ever seen in my life. Here’s what happened…
—
Irvine woman, 19, dies in crash
Her parents and brother are among the injured in the collision Sunday night.
By JOHN McDONALD
The Orange County Register
A 19-year-old Irvine woman was killed and her parents and brother injured Sunday night when their BMW collided with another car, police said.
Jessica Herron was a passenger in the 2003 BMW eastbound on Michelson Drive when it collided with a 2003 Volkswagen Passat that was southbound on Harvard Avenue at about 8:30 p.m., Irvine police Lt. Jeff Love said.
The victim was in the car that was driven by her father, Joseph Herron, 50. Her mother, Dana Klein, 50, and 12-year-old brother also were in the vehicle when the accident took place. All four were taken to Western Medical Center in Santa Ana.
Joseph Herron was reported to have serious internal injuries and injuries to his head, back and torso, police said. Klein had a fractured arm and the boy had internal injuries and injuries to his back. Jessica Herron died at the hospital.
Amal Astarbadi, the driver of the Volkswagen, was taken to Irvine Regional Hospital, where she was treated for minor injuries.
Love said there was no evidence that alcohol was a factor in the crash. Neither driver was issued a citation. The case is under investigation.
Anyone with information about the accident is asked to call Irvine police officer Scott Vales or civilian traffic investigator Kyle Oldoerp at (949) 724-7000.
—
I cannot imagine what either families must be going through. I just wish there was something I could do to help aside from offering my deepest condolences; unfortunately, I don’t know what else I can do.
Anyway, take care everybody…
October 25th, 2005 at 3:19 pm
I can’t believe you had to witness this horrific event. I go to Vanderbilt University where Jessica is from and we had a fall break this weekend so that’s why she was home in California. When I got back today I got an email saying she had been killed in an automobile accident. It is very shocking and very sad as she was really loved here. I did a search on yahoo to find details on the accident, and your post was the only thing that came up…so I just wanted to say thanks for having the courage to put it up here…I’m sure it will be seen by quite a few people here who were wondering about the accident. My thoughts are with you, as well as her family.
October 25th, 2005 at 11:29 pm
J, thank you for your kind comments. I’m really sure Jessica and her family are wonderful people, nevertheless it saddens me to think that tragedies such as these have to happen at all. Anyway I just pray that we’ll all be able to move forward after this event.
Now since there are people who might find this site because they are wondering about the accident, I should add that a funeral service for Jessica Herron is scheduled for 1 p.m. Thursday at Congregation Shir Ha-Ma’alot, 3652 Michelson Drive, Irvine.
Note: The information about the funeral service and the article above were taken from the OC Register. I suggest looking there for more information regarding the incident.
October 26th, 2005 at 3:11 pm
Three of my coworkers are very good friends with the Herrons, through the father Jay (Joseph).
I hope you have contacted the Police as I know they were in search of witnesses of what happened.
October 26th, 2005 at 4:04 pm
I have to say, I drove by the cars Monday morning on my way to work. They had left both of them where they stopped so that they could investigate. I haven’t been able to get the scene of the Herron’s car out of my mind since then.
It really just blew my mind that 5 people’s (and countless friends and relatives)lives were forever changed in an instant. If you did witness this, I do hope you contacted police as well. Also, you don’t say in your posting who ran the red light. That has been on my mind since I saw what happened. I drive down harvard and michelson every day, and every time I’m at that intersection now I am pondering who ran the red? Because it was very evident someone wasn’t paying attention.
Sometimes I wish that for just one 24 hour period, the police would leave every accident that happened right where it happened. To remind people that they are mortal, to slow down, to pay attention. I have a 4 mile commute to and from work and in the past year I’ve seen evidence of two fatal accidents involving someone running a red light.
It really stops and makes you ask, “do I drive to the best and safest of my abilities?” And if it doesn’t make you ask that, it should.
October 26th, 2005 at 5:03 pm
I am one of the Investigators assigned to this case. Please email me ASAP so that I can talk to you about what you saw. Thank you.
KYLE OLDOERP, CTI – Irvine Police Department
October 26th, 2005 at 5:46 pm
I met Jessica this summer and remember her as a joyful and kind girl. I got an email informing me about her accident and I have been shocked ever since. Can you post more details about what you saw? I’m really curious to know how the accident actually happened.
My thoughts and prayers are with the Herron family.
October 26th, 2005 at 7:54 pm
Thank you for sharing this.
I am a friend of Jessica’s and I also work at the OC Register. I am in the process of writing a follow up article on Jessica’s life and the service for friday.
I have known Jessica since I was 10 years old, so the shock of seeing her name in the police report I was reading has left it’s mark. I’m still trying to keep my compsure enough to reflect (and reflect well) on Jessica’s life.
Thank you for posting this. I know how difficult it must be but just know that you are now part of this family. We’re all just thrown together by it.
-Anna Couturier
October 26th, 2005 at 9:55 pm
I want to thank everyone again for sharing their thoughts and feelings.
I should mention that I was already interviewed by the police on Sunday night. I apologise I didn’t mention this earlier, but as you may have noticed I intentionally left out details in this blog. I didn’t want to say too much publicly out of respect for the Herrons and the police while they continue to conduct their investigation.
October 27th, 2005 at 7:43 am
Hey you! I’m sorry you had to witness that. My sympathies are especially with the family as well. I hope that whatever information you gave can help.
Please always take care,
Kathy
October 27th, 2005 at 8:37 am
I got to know Jessica this summer when we worked at a camp together. She was a truely kind and loving person. When I got the email telling me of this awful tragedy I couldn’t believe it. I’m sorry you had to witness that terrible accident in which such a great woman lost her life.
October 27th, 2005 at 8:57 am
i went to high school with jessica, and she was an incredibly sweet, smart, and beautiful person. it saddens me that such an amazing life was cut short in such a horrific instant. my thoughts and prayers go out to her family and friends.
also, in answer to someone else’s question, the other driver ran the red light. the person that hit the herron’s has minor injuries. jessica’s father is critically injured, as is her younger brother. her mother has a broken arm and she died at the hospital. that should tell you how fast the other driver was going.
i apologize if i seem somewhat bitter but i am still in shock that someone i saw every day in high school is gone. she had a wonderful life ahead of her and we are all slightly worse off with her missing from our lives.
October 27th, 2005 at 6:06 pm
RIP Jessica. You will be missed by all those who knew you.
October 27th, 2005 at 7:58 pm
Isn’t that so sad. I saw the cars on Monday morning and then read about it in the paper and I was so upset and I don’t even know the people. That poor family. They will definately need prayers from everyone. Did you see the flowers off to the side of the road and her picture? It breaks my heart everytime I drive by.
October 27th, 2005 at 8:27 pm
Well, this seems like the most appropriate place to post something…
Thanks, again, for putting this information up on your blog. I knew Jessica through an extracurricular drama program that, although it officially met only once a week, was such a part of all of our lives that it was as though we went to “regular” school together, too. I’m back on the east coast now and just found out about the accident last night (Wednesday). I feel very out of touch and distant being all this ways away, so your information is incredibly valuable to me in understanding what happened. I’m sorry you had to witness this–know that, as others have already said better than I ever could, Jessica was a very special person whose loss will always be felt. Never did I see her smile leave her face or her cheer leave her voice.
October 28th, 2005 at 1:56 pm
Philip,
Thank you for your website. We are the insurance company for the driver of the VW investigating this unfortunate loss. The PR will not be available for several months. It would be very helpful to everyone involved if you could call us to give your statement of what happened. If you would please call Rey Duarte at Allied Insurance 714 547-4466 it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.
October 28th, 2005 at 4:28 pm
I’ve always been scared to drive through that michelson and harvard intersection. It’s ginormous, and especially at night when people coming down harvard on on the golf course and the people coming michelson on side park place is on are always speeding. And then with the intersection being kind of skewed on both sides, you can see all teh cars coming on each side. Even when i know i have the green light, i always slow down before going through that intersection and make sure that people are going through
October 28th, 2005 at 5:34 pm
If there was a kind or smart witness to a FATALITY,as is portrayed by the author of musings,one would think that they would have gone to the police and provided evidence. After the publication of the “musings” comment, the polce responded on this web site with an e mail requesting that the witness come in for an interview.If the author did, then that is great.But the fact that the police had to ask them to come in suggests that they never had come in to see them before. If they did not talk to the police prior to the publication,then clearly the author’s credibility is in question. If the author had not spoken to the police before the internet publication, then surely she or he is a person who is seeking attention by using,in a perverse way, the suffering of others. Any innuendo that the father was responsible for the accident should be disregarded .The author should apologize for any innuendo he or she may have created.doug honig
October 28th, 2005 at 5:53 pm
Doug–I believe that the author did state that he spoke to the police on Sunday night. This is so sad. I don’t know the victims involved but as others do, I drive through Michelson and Harvard daily to get to work. Monday morning was a shocker to see what had happened to the cars and I immediately went to the Register’s web site to see what had happened. The memorial to Jessica is wonderful. What a beautiful girl. My condolences to the family.
October 28th, 2005 at 8:47 pm
I was browsing through google to find out about the accident when your website came up. Thank you so much for posting about it. I knew Jessica through a drama program outside of school. Although I probably didn’t talk to her that much, only maybe once or twice or when we’d see each other on special occasions, she was always the sweetest girl. I cannot be sad yet because I am still in shock. I am amazed at how the lively, upbeat girl I just saw this past June is no longer with us.
I don’t know if you know this but at the intersection where the accident happened is where the synagog is that she belonged to and where her service was held.
I hope you reported what you saw to the police so they can piece the information together.
Thank you for posting this.
November 2nd, 2005 at 7:11 pm
Hi,
My sincerest condolences to the person who posted this and to the family of Jessica. I passed through that intersection the Monday after the accident and it really tore me apart. Many months ago I witnessed a car accident which resulted in a fatality, and I must say it is the most traumatic thing imaginable. Even reading your post made me come nearly to tears. I suppose only time and prayer can fix the pain that is caused by such an incident. I hope that both you and the family, friends and acquaintances of this girl are healing with time. She sounds like a wonderful person. May she rest in peace.
God Bless!
November 4th, 2005 at 8:10 pm
I went to High School with Jessica, My sister and her graduated the same year and knew her from my sister, I dont remember ever seeing Jessica without a smile on her face. She was one of the nicest, sweetest, most caring people i have known. May she rest in peace.
November 5th, 2005 at 10:57 pm
Thank you for posting this information regarding the horrible accident. I too drive to work everyday down that same path and could not believe what I saw. The memorial is beautiful and although I do not know her, I wish her family and friends peace but yet the courage to go for Jessica. Jessica may you rest in peace. I hope these posts serve as an eye opening awareness to those of us who do drive that road to slow down and always be cautious of ourselves and those around us. As I am sure that the driver of the car did not intend to run the red light….I’m also sure she will never do it again. It takes just one mistake
God Bless each and everyone of us!
May 2nd, 2007 at 12:34 am
jessica was my counselor at camp only a few months before she died. she was one of the happiest people i had ever met. she always could make me smile and truly impacted my life in the short month we were together. she cared about other people so deeply and i know that she would have changed the world. knowing what happened to her changed my world. no matter how good a person you are or how much good you do, your life can end at any given moment. jess’s story is a lesson to us all. she was beautiful, giving, and energetic. she cared about her family more than anything in the world. that is perhaps what saddens me most. her sister, lindsay, and her were truly best friends. at camp i would look at them all the time and think how that’s exactly the kind of relationship i wanted with my sister. they both cared for their little brother and they were the perfect family if such a thing exists. jess if you can see this i just want you to know that your story changed my life. i didnt realize what an amazing person you were and how rare people like you are in this world until you were gone. i love you so much and think about you on the 23rd of every month. i light candles on the 6 month anniversaries of your accident and every time i think of you i regret not becoming closer with you. i love you jess. we all love you. our entire cabin. you are truly missed.
April 20th, 2009 at 10:40 pm
I was looking through an old camp year book, and it reminded me of her. She was by far the sweetest woman at camp. As a camper, I fell and fractured my ankle, and she helped me get up and walked me/carried my weight to the nurse and got my counselor. I will never forget the smiles she brought, and the joy in her voice.
it has been almost 4 years and the pain from her absence is still being felt.