Neither Wore Helmets : 2 Motorcycles Collide; 1 Rider Killed, 1 Hurt

A 20-year-old motorcyclist, who was not wearing a helmet, died of massive head injuries when he collided with another motorcyclist as both sped along Warner Avenue late Tuesday in Santa Ana.

Police said the two bikes struck the curb after colliding, sending both men and bikes flying into the air, uprooting a palm tree and knocking down a no-parking sign.

Darren Steven Marquez of Santa Ana died at the scene. The other motorcyclist, William B. Mavers, 31, of Santa Ana, also not wearing a helmet, suffered a broken leg, police said.

The accident occurred a day after Gov. George Deukmejian vetoed a bill that would have required all California motorcyclists to wear helmets.

A coroner’s spokesman said it was difficult to determine whether a helmet might have saved Marquez. But, he said, “his chances would have been a whole lot better if he’d had a helmet on.”

Marquez’s father, Danny Marquez, 48, of Santa Ana said he did not believe that his son, who had just been discharged from the Army in New Mexico, knew Mavers.

“They probably just met on the street,” Marquez said, adding that he thought the two most likely were racing.

Marquez said his son, who was single and lived at home, owned a helmet and sometimes wore it. And though he wouldn’t fault his son for not wearing one Tuesday night, Marquez said he has been frightened of motorcycles for a long time.

“I was almost killed on one myself,” he said. “I really didn’t want him driving one, but he was of age.”

Police Lt. Bob Chavez said Marquez and Mavers were riding their bikes east in the 1700 block of West Warner Avenue at about 70 m.p.h. when the accident occurred. Mavers was reported in fair condition Wednesday at Fountain Valley Regional Hospital and Medical Center.

Despite his son’s death, Danny Marquez said he believes that motorcyclists should be able to decide for themselves whether to wear helmets. “I do not regret that he was not wearing a helmet, even though that might have saved his life today,” he said Wednesday. “He was doing what he wanted to do.”