Red Hot Chili Peppers' Josh Klinghoffer to Be Charged With Vehicular Manslaughter
The musician will be arraigned on Thursday after he fatally struck a 47-year-old pedestrian with his SUV in March.
Former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer is facing criminal charges in connection to a March 2024 car accident in which he fatally struck a pedestrian. The Rock & Roll Hall of Famer, a current touring member of Pearl Jam, will be arraigned in a California court on Thursday on a misdemeanor charge of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence, according to KTLA 5 News and Deadline.
The charge stems from a March 18 crash that was captured on video from a nearby security camera. Klinghoffer is accused of driving a GMC Yukon on Meridian Avenue near West Main Street in Alhambra, California and striking 47-year-old pedestrian Israel Sanchez as he was walking in a crosswalk. Andrew Brettler, Klinghoffer's attorney, said in a previous statement that Klinghoffer "immediately pulled over, called 911, and remained at the scene until police and paramedics arrived."
Sanchez "suffered "excruciating" injuries after being "thrown and/or dragged across the asphalt," according to a wrongful death lawsuit filed by his daughter, Ashley Sanchez, in Los Angeles Superior Court in July. Sanchez was pronounced dead at the Huntington Hospital at 5:28 p.m., per court records.
There has been debate over whether or not Klinghoffer may have been distracted while driving. Sanchez's family alleged that the guitarist was distracted while driving and failed to brake in time.
"Video of the incident shows that Defendant Klinghoffer made no efforts to brake or slow down until after he fatally struck Mr. Sanchez, indicating that Klinghoffer was likely to be driving while distracted," Sanchez's family's attorneys stated in a news release. "Video taken seconds before the incident shows an object between the steering wheel and the driver that is believed to be a phone."
However, Klinghoffer's legal team has disputed allegations of distracted driving, with Brettler telling KTLA 5 News, "It's clear from the evidence that Mr. Klinghoffer was not on the phone at the time of the accident. This was a tragic accident. There was no criminal intent, nor is any alleged."
Klinghoffer, who spent a decade with the Red Hot Chili Peppers from 2009 to 2019 and has also played with Jane's Addiction, Pearl Jam, Iggy Pop and Morrissey, will be arraigned on a misdemeanor charge of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence at the Alhambra, California Courthouse at 8:30 a.m. PT. He has been on release on his own recognizance.
