Roadside Memorial Erected for Hemet Man Killed in French Valley Crash

Candles, flowers and a makeshift wooden cross sit alongside Winchester Road in French Valley where a 19-year-old Hemet man died early Saturday.

Jorge Gonzalez Jr. was killed in a , when the car he was driving hit a guardrail and landed in an open field near just north of the Auld Road intersection.

Gonzalez' car crossed over Winchester Road into the southbound lanes and struck the guardrail on the west side of the roadway, said Sgt. Jon Flavin of the Murrieta Police Department. The car went through the guardrail and landed in an open field approximately 15-20 feet below.

Along the guardrail, friends and family used markers to write their goodbyes to Gonzalez. His muffler sits as part of the memorial.

Taylor, whose last name is being withheld at the editor's discretion, is a 17-year-old French Valley resident who said she witnessed the crash. The teen was riding in a car with her best friend and her best friend's boyfriend when she said she saw Gonzalez' car speed past them at a high rate of speed. In the next instant, she said they saw the car spin out and head the other direction on Winchester Road.

Both cars were traveling north in the direction of Hemet, she said. The car she was traveling in was in the far right lane heading toward Thompson Road, she said.

Taylor said she was the one who called 911.

"It was shocking. I didn't know what to do. He was literally there one second and gone the next."

She said her and her friends were interviewed for up to four hours following the crash, about the events leading up to the accident.

As of Monday, Taylor was still shaken up about what she saw. She plans to attend a car wash intended to raise money for Gonzalez' funeral services.

The crash was under investigation, according to a news release. Investigators could not be reached Monday for further comment on the accident.