YAKIMA COUNTY, Wash.-The families of three teenagers that were killed in a crash in 2021 have filed a lawsuit against Yakima County alleging the road was unreasonably dangerous.
The family of a teen that lost their arm in the crash have also joined the lawsuit that was filed in Benton County and is scheduled to start on September 30, 2024. Tamaki Law is representing the families who have filed the lawsuit.
“It does not take an engineer to look at this sloped roadway and be able to tell that it is not reasonably safe, as is required under Washington law,” said Megan Hale, attorney for the families. “My clients are hopeful that through this lawsuit, changes will be made in Yakima County to ensure this never happens again.”
The crash happened on the 3700 block of Shields Rd, a gravel road that runs north and south near Harrah. The unposted speed limit on the road is 50 miles per hour.
On August 5, 2021, Joel Vasquez-Vallares was on his lunch break with six co-workers when he lost control of his pickup and crashed. All the occupants of the truck were between the ages of 16 and 18.
According to a press release on the lawsuit, Vasquez-Vallares’ truck came over a hill and became airborne as the road shifted at a steep downward angle. The truck left the road then hit a county sign and rolled several times, ejecting four of the teens before stopping on its top.
The lawsuit filed by the families against the County alleges that the steep downward slope and the unposted speed limit created unsafe conditions that resulted in the deadly crash.
In July of 2023 Vasquez Vallares pleaded guilty to two counts of vehicular homicide and one count of vehicular assault, he has been sentenced to seven and a half years in jail.
