Accident or negligence? Christine Chavez, homeless Modesto California woman run over by lawnmower while laying at enclosure frequented by homeless persons.
case of negligence or simply an accident? A California family are demanding answers after a 28 year old woman was fatally run over by a lawnmower while taking a nap in the park.
Christine Chavez, 27, described as homeless, was lying in a weed-filled area of Beard Brook Park in Modesto on July 8 when she was run over by an employee cutting the grass.
The grass cutter who was comandeering a John Deere tractor with a pull-behind mower – was only able to spot the body of Chavez after he’d mowed her over.
How did grasscutter not see victim and how did homeless woman not hear approaching lawnmower?
Her father, Christopher Chavez, said that when he went to the scene of her death, there will still parts of her body laying there.
‘There were many pieces of (her remains) around there and I called the police,’ Chavez told Fox 40. ‘I went there and I still have pieces of bones, like pieces of her skull and some teeth. It’s terrible.’
Not immediately clear is how the victim came not to be aware of the usually loud operating machine as the lawn was being cut around her.
‘She didn’t deserve that for that reason, for being homeless,’ said her older brother Randy Chavez, 33 told via the Modesto Bee. ‘My sister was loved. The only thing she wanted was to be free.’
Another female family member, who did not give her name, told Fox40: ‘I mean, big chunks of her are all over the place, just covered up with the grass.
‘We have to go, you know, just like to see the place.
‘And to be right there, looking at the ground and then seeing, like, chunks hair is horrible.’
Useless statement released
Family members said other homeless people in the park told them they saw Christine go to the creek to wash her hair, then come back to sleep on a hill near the playground and baseball field. About 20 minutes later, the mower came through.
The 12-acre park is frequented by unhoused people, and was once an authorized camping site for the area’s homeless. Recently, the park switched from city ownership to private ownership by E.&J. Gallo Winery.
The wine maker, which only bought the park a day before Chavez was killed, put out a statement on Friday.
‘Gallo acquired the Beard Brook Park property in Modesto on Friday, July 7, 2023. On Saturday, July 8, 2023, a landscaping contractor was hired to perform weed abatement and fire prevention services.’
‘There was an accident at approximately 12:00 p.m. involving the contractor’s tractor and an individual who was not visible and laying in a tall, weeded area. The contractor immediately contacted the Modesto Police Department, and upon arrival, MPD officers declared the individual was deceased.’
‘Gallo expresses its sincere condolences to the family of the victim,’ the statement continued.
Grover Landscaping Services, who cut the grass at the park, also put out a statement Friday.
‘In a dry, overgrown area, our operator discovered the body of a woman impacted by the pull-behind mower, at which time he contacted the Modesto Police Department,’ the statement reads.
Both Gallo and Grover have promised to cooperate with any investigation into Chavez’s death.
Chavez’s brother-in-law, Jose Zermeño believes there may have been negligence involved.
‘I work with machinery, I know when you are with machinery, you are paying attention to what is ahead of you, especially if you have something dragging behind you,’ Zermeño told Fox 40. ‘And for him not to see anything laying in front of him, he wasn’t doing his job.’
Homeless – invisible and disposable…
Chavez’s family says they will do whatever they can to get justice for their beloved daughter.
‘I am sad for what happened to my daughter, and we want justice for the way that she died,’ said Christine’s mother Josefina Chavez.
At a city council meeting, Dez Martinez, a member of a homeless advocacy organization We Are Not Invisible, was critical of the city and said his heart broke for Chavez’s father.
‘He doesn’t even get to see his daughter,’ he said. ‘You guys get to kiss your kids good night. If you buried them, you get to see them. He does not. Thank you.’
Martinez was critical of the treatment of Modesto’s homeless population beyond what happened to Chavez.
‘What happened to building affordable housing, tiny home villages, safe camps, to get people off the streets so they’re not raped, they’re not killed, and they’re not run over while taking a nap in a park?’
Both Modesto police and Mayor Sue Zwahlen spoke at the same meeting, apologizing for Chavez’s death but calling it an accident.
The Chavez family said it wants the Modesto police to investigate the driver of the mowing tractor, who has not been identified. Family members also want changes made to make it safer for homeless people in the region.
‘My sister wanted to be famous. And hopefully we make her famous and change things for other people going through the same situation,’ brother Randy Chavez said. ‘But it’s not the way we wanted her to be famous.’
The family has started a Gofundme to raise money for Chavez’s daughter and get justice for Christine.
Chavez leaves behind a nine year-old daughter who’s being cared for by her family.
