Police are still determining what caused a woman behind the wheel of a pickup to crash into a motorcyclist Saturday night, killing the young woman on the bike.

Bakersfield Police Department spokeswoman Sgt. Mary DeGeare said witnesses reported that the truck’s driver, Annamarie Reynosa, 20, never slowed or braked before she crashed into Charla Wilkins, 20.

Wilkins had been riding a motorcycle north on Jewetta Avenue and was stopped at the intersection with Reina Road when Reynosa ran into her at 8:37 p.m., police said.

Witnesses said Reynosa was driving at or above the speed limit when she hit Wilkins, according to police. DeGeare said Reynosa had consumed alcohol before the crash but was below the legal limit for driving under the influence. Reynosa had not been arrested or charged with a crime, DeGeare said Monday.

Wilkins, who was wearing a helmet, was taken to Kern Medical Center where she died at about 9:30 p.m., according to a Kern County Sheriff’s Department Coroner Section news release. Her funeral is scheduled for 11 a.m. Friday at Bakersfield Family Church-His House of Refuge, 106 Wilson Ave.

Pastor Richard Hill, who knew Wilkins for more than a decade, said she was a happy person who loved her family.

“She was just a beautiful young lady. Very loving, very kind,” Hill said.

The pastor said he remembered the first time he met Wilkins: She kept her twin brother and two younger brothers in line, and made sure they were polite. The four were very close, he said.

“She was kind of like a mother hen to them,” Hill said.

Wilkins had recently gotten into motorcycles, Hill said. She loved it but Hill said he tried to talk her into getting rid of her bike because he worried about her safety.

A memorial fund for Wilkins has been set up at Kern Schools Federal Credit Union. Donations can be made at any of the credit union’s branches to the Charla Wilkins Memorial Fund.

Motorcycle Accident Wrongful Death Liability

While the accident on April 14th remains under investigation, the victims or family members of the victims would be well-advised to seek immediate consultation from a  wrongful death Lawyer. An experienced attorney can advise the victims of their legal rights and decide the best course of action in recovering the maximum compensation for their injuries, lost wages, and pain and suffering. Also, in unique and complex situations such as this one, an attorney can hire a highly skilled independent investigator to reconstruct the scene of the accident to determine who is at fault.

The California wrongful death attorney Gary A Kessler and the Law Offices of Gary A Kessler are compassionate and fully understand that you are attempting to cope with extreme grief and sorrow associated with the loss of a loved one.  The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler carefully selects its wrongful death cases so that we may give you (the client) the substantial personal attention neccessary to obtain a successful result for your wrongful death case.

The Law Offices of Gary A Kessler is prepared to front all costs required for a thorough investigation and expert witnesses to prepare for trial of your case.  As in all wrongful death and serious personal injury cases, we advance all legal costs to prepare and present our client’s claim, and receive for our services only a percentage of what we recover for our attorney fees on their behalf.  Upon settlement our costs shall be reimbursed to us from the gross recovery.  If there is no recovery, no attorneys fees or costs are owed to our firm.