Share and Follow
A couple in California faces charges of child endangerment following a tragic incident where their teenage son sustained severe injuries in a high-speed e-bike collision, despite numerous warnings about his reckless riding behavior.
Steven Leroy Crews and Jeanna Marie Gabellini, both 58 and residents of Benicia, were charged by the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office on Thursday. Prosecutors claim the couple permitted their son to unlawfully ride a powerful electric motorbike for years, despite the inherent risks.
During their court appearance on Friday, the couple entered pleas of not guilty through their legal representatives.
The couple’s youngest son suffered critical injuries on September 18, 2025, around 3:05 PM, when he collided with a minivan while riding a $4,400 Surron Light Bee e-motorcycle. The crash occurred at a bustling intersection in Walnut Creek, close to De La Salle High School.
Following the accident, he was urgently transported to the hospital with life-threatening injuries.
For his family, the aftermath was life-altering.
Gabellini, who runs MasterPeace Coaching and describes herself as a business coach and ‘law of attraction’ expert, has documented her son’s recovery in a series of blog posts.
‘No doctor could give us promises. No one could tell us if or when he’d recover,’ she wrote.
The teen suffered swelling to his brain, fractured vertebrae in his back and neck, and spent nine days in a coma, according to his mother.
Steven Crews and Jeanna Gabellini were charged with child endangerment after prosecutors said they let their youngest son ride a powerful electric motorcycle illegally for years before a crash left him critically injured
The boy was seriously hurt on September 18, 2025, when the Surron Light Bee electric motorcycle he was riding slammed into a minivan at a busy intersection in Walnut Creek near De La Salle High School
‘When our son was hit by a car on his bike, we were slammed into a reality no parent wants,’ she wrote, adding that she refused to accept the possibility he might be left paralyzed or cognitively impaired.
She described clinging to faith, pushing aside ‘what ifs,’ and making plans for his future ‘as if all was on track for his 110% comeback.’
But prosecutors allege the crash came after years of warnings that went ignored.
Authorities said the teen had been riding the vehicle unlawfully between the ages of 14 and 17, and that his parents had received multiple warnings from law enforcement about his behavior.
The teen’s social media accounts also show a long-running interest in biking and motorsports, with posts dating back several years.
Officials allege the couple ignored repeated citations tied to the teen’s riding and failed to intervene.
The district attorney’s office said Crews and Gabellini ‘willfully and unlawfully permitted a child to be injured or placed in a situation where the child’s health is endangered.’
Police said the teen had been riding a Surron Light Bee, a high-powered electric motorcycle capable of speeds far beyond traditional e-bikes, without a license and in a reckless manner.
Gabellini, a business coach who runs MasterPeace Coaching, has publicly documented her son’s recovery, describing the ordeal as life-altering and recalling the moment doctors prepared him for brain surgery.
Police said the teen had been riding a Surron Light Bee, a high-powered electric motorcycle capable of speeds far beyond traditional e-bikes, without a license and in a reckless manner
Investigators said he was traveling at unsafe speeds before colliding with the minivan.
The driver of the van was not injured and remained at the scene.
The crash happened at the intersection of Treat Boulevard and Arkell Road.
The case comes amid growing concern over high-speed electric bikes and similar vehicles, particularly among teenagers.
Electric bikes and scooters are governed by different rules depending on their power and speed, a distinction that has become central to enforcement.
While standard e-bikes are generally treated like bicycles and do not require a license, registration or insurance, higher-powered Surron-style electric motorcycles are treated as motor vehicles under California law.
That means riders must have a license, registration and follow the same rules as motorcycles.
Prosecutors said the crash was preventable, alleging the couple had received multiple warnings and citations related to their son’s riding but continued to allow him to ride. A screengrab from the city’s e-bike safety video is seen above
These vehicles can reach speeds well above 30mph and require helmets for all riders and use on public roadways.
By contrast, most e-bikes fall into three categories: pedal-assist models capped at 20mph, throttle-assisted versions with the same limit, and faster Class 3 bikes that can reach 28mph but require riders to be at least 16 and wear helmets.
Authorities say confusion over these distinctions, combined with the growing popularity of high-speed electric bikes, has contributed to a surge in dangerous riding.
The charges also follow new California laws that took effect on January 1, increasing accountability for parents.
Under the updated rules, parents can now be cited and held financially or legally responsible if their children ride electric motorcycles illegally.
Police in Petaluma have already cited multiple parents under the law after a string of incidents involving reckless juvenile riders being injured after hitting cars.
Earlier this month, a 16-year-old rider fatally struck a 60-year-old nurse in Davis.
In another case, a couple filed a lawsuit after an 11-year-old riding an e-bike triggered a chain-reaction crash that killed their four-year-old son.
New California laws that took effect in 2025 now allow parents to be cited or held legally responsible if their children ride such vehicles illegally, and similar cases have already been filed across the state
Contra Costa County District Attorney Diana Becton warned that the rise of electric bikes and electric motorcycles presents serious safety risks.
‘E-bikes and e-motorcycles are more prevalent on city streets,’ she said. ‘Parents must understand the dangers these vehicles can pose to children if operated unlawfully and without proper driver education.’
Authorities are urging parents to think carefully before allowing minors to ride high-powered electric vehicles, warning that the consequences may extend beyond traffic violations.
Further regulations are already on the horizon.
Starting in 2026, all e-bikes in California must be equipped with a red rear reflector or light visible from about 500 feet.
For riders under 18, helmet violations may be dismissed if they complete an approved safety course and show proof of a properly fitted helmet.
The Daily Mail has reached out to the Contra Costa County District Attorney’s Office for comment.