Family of young mother killed in street racing incident sues city, others for $15 million

PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN ) — The family of a young mother who was killed during a street racing incident while waiting at a bus stop back in 2022 is suing the city of Portland and various other agencies for $15 million, arguing her death could have been prevented.

On August 27, 2022, court documents say Jonathan Peña, Kenneth Freeman and a “John Doe” were competing in a high-speed street race early that morning. Peña and Freeman reportedly lost control of their vehicles, with Peña’s Mustang hitting and killing 26-year-old Ashlee McGill at Southeast Stark Street and Southeast 133rd Avenue. Peña’s vehicle also hit the vehicle of another speed racer before crashing into a tree.

In September 2023, Freeman pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide and was sentenced to five years in prison. In May 2024, Peña pleaded guilty to criminally negligent homicide, recklessly endangering another person, and reckless driving and was sentenced to three years in prison .

On Wednesday, McGill’s mother, Mistegay Nicholson, brought forth the suit against the city, PBOT, PPB, TriMet, ODOT, Multnomah County, Peña, Freeman and several other John/Jane Does who were allegedly involved in the incident.

The suit claims that “at all times prior to the crash,” Southeast Stark Street was designated by PBOT as a high-crash corridor and also a frequent area for street racers. Further, the suit argues that, since the area in which the crash occurred had a “lack of visual cues and warnings” for a raised curb-height median in the middle of the street, the defendants had swerved to avoid it mid-race, causing McGill’s death.

The lawsuit also states the bus stop McGill was waiting at was “substantially blocked from the view of eastbound traffic by a telephone pole, trash can, fire hydrant and other signage.”

The lawsuit claims negligence on the part of the City of Portland and the Portland Police Bureau since they claim their disbanding of the traffic enforcement unit in 2021 led to an increase in traffic danger, meaning, “It was foreseeable that injury and death to pedestrians such as Ashlee McGill would occur.”

Given these factors, McGill’s family is seeking at least $15,000,000 total against all of the defendants for negligence, recklessness and wrongful death.

KOIN 6 News reached out to PBOT, PPB, TriMet, ODOT and Multnomah County who declined to comment.

KOIN 6 also reached out to the attorneys of Peña and Freeman and have not yet heard back.

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