Mom Of Elk Grove Boy, 14, Killed In Bike Crash Calls Death Preventable
ELK GROVE (CBS13) — Elk Grove neighbors are remembering Burke Madden, a 14-year-old who was killed Saturday in a crash while crossing a heavily-traveled road in Elk Grove.
His mom calls his tragic death preventable and wants drivers to slow down and look for kids like Burke at crosswalks.
"He had so much more to do, and give, and this could have all been prevented," said Rachelle Fochetti.
She calls the way he died "unbearable" and says it's something no mother should have to go through.
"I'll miss our sunset walks, I'll miss rubbing the lavender on his wrists at night before I kiss him goodnight," she said.
On Saturday, a driver clipped the back of Burke's bike on his way through the crosswalk, throwing him 10 feet in the air and thirty feet away from where he was hit.
Police say the pedestrian signal wasn't activated to alert the oncoming driver, but Fochetti says the speed limit changed on the road in January, and drivers don't stop for pedestrians or people on bikes.
"It's a straight road, you can see people in the crosswalk. You can see kids in the crosswalk," said Fochetti.
More from CBS Sacramento:
- Stimulus Package Update: Is A Deal Even Possible At This Point?
- Butte County Parents Accused Of Waiting 14 Hours Before Taking Baby To Hospital For Severe Burns
- CHP Warning Sacramento-Area Residents Of Dangerous 'Freeway Pawn' Scam
Almost 100 people gathered in Elk Grove for an honorary bike ride in Burke's honor Wednesday. Fochetti says she's honored to see this support, knowing her bright-eyed son was loved and will be remembered.
"His life was robbed from him and were so sorry as parents we couldn't save our child, it's unbearable, he deserves so much," she said.
Fochetti is creating a scholarship in Burke's honor to donate to the Elk Grove Library.
Police say the driver who hit him stopped about 400 feet down the street after the crash and is cooperating with the investigation.