On April 25, 2025, Emery Chalekian was walking in a marked crosswalk at Encinitas Boulevard and Village Square Drive in Encinitas, CA on her way to ballet class when a driver ran a red light and struck her. Emery died from her injuries.
She was only 12 years old.
Emery was not simply a statistic. She was a daughter, sister, friend, dancer and beloved member of the Encinitas community.
Emery was adventurous, creative, thoughtful, resourceful and inclusive. She had a remarkable ability to notice when someone was struggling and make them feel seen. After her death, her parents, John and Bridget, learned that Emery had quietly been helping a third-grade girl who was being bullied. At Emery’s celebration of life, the girl’s father told them his daughter would not have made it through third grade without Emery.
Emery loved ballet. She loved her family. She loved her friends. She was an old soul, a trendsetter and someone who seemed capable of mastering whatever she put her mind to.
Her parents now carry a heartbreak no parent should ever have to bear, while doing everything they can to make sure another family never experiences what theirs has.
A Tragedy That Became a Movement
About a month after Emery’s death, John and Bridget began attending Encinitas City Council meetings. They soon realized that remembering Emery would not be enough. They wanted her death to lead to meaningful change.
Their family mission is clear: make Encinitas streets safer for everyone, especially the children who deserve the opportunity to grow up and realize their dreams.
That mission led to Safe Streets Encinitas, a grassroots organization focused on eliminating serious injuries and deaths on Encinitas streets through infrastructure, enforcement and education. Its work focuses on four key areas: speed, intersections, distracted driving and DUIs.
Laura Van Dusen, a close family friend and founding member, has stood beside John and Bridget throughout the fight.
She also believes Emery’s death should compel the community to act.
“One of the things we’re really trying to implement is red-light cameras. Emery was specifically killed by a red-light runner, and the data shows that red-light cameras save lives.”
Founding member Mike Dobransky has brought another important perspective to the movement: after a fatal crash, the question cannot stop at who was at fault. Communities must also ask what role the roadway played and what could have been done differently to prevent the next tragedy.
Red-Light Running Is Not a Minor Violation
Running a red light can take a life in seconds.
The driver makes a decision, but the pedestrian crossing legally, the cyclist riding through an intersection or the driver entering on a green light has no control over that decision.
The Chalekians put it simply: “Running a red light can result in a life sentence for the victims, and the offender, where the victims had no choice in the action but were still sentenced.”
Encinitas has seen the danger firsthand.
The city previously operated red-light cameras at two intersections beginning in 2004 and 2005. Reports on the program found an 84% reduction in red-light collisions after installation and a 45% collision reduction at El Camino Real and Encinitas Boulevard. The program ended in 2020 after the city’s contract expired, following a City Council decision not to extend it because of issues involving the vendor.
So the question facing Encinitas today is simple:
If red-light cameras previously helped reduce dangerous crashes, and a child was killed by a red-light runner, why aren’t they being used now?
SB 720 Creates a New Opportunity
California’s Senate Bill 720 provides a path forward.
Signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom, SB 720 authorizes local governments to implement a reformed red-light camera program designed around safety. Under the new approach, violations are civil infractions, fines are generally capped at $100, and revenue from citations must be directed toward traffic safety improvements. The program uses license plate readers rather than facial recognition and includes lower citation amounts than the previous system.
For Laura, the new program addresses many of the concerns surrounding the previous system.
“It’s addressed all the problems of the previous red-light program, and it really just focuses on safety, and it makes sense.”
The technology is not about punishment. It is about changing behavior before another family receives the phone call that John and Bridget received.
Emery’s Crossing
The Chalekian family is also asking Encinitas to rename Village Square Drive “Emery’s Crossing.”
More than a street sign, the name would become a permanent reminder of a young girl whose life was cut short and a community determined to protect others.
For John and Bridget, Emery’s Crossing would represent both remembrance and responsibility. They want everyone who passes through the intersection to remember that an innocent young girl was killed by a driver who chose to run a red light, and that what happened to Emery was preventable.
More than 2,000 people have signed a petition supporting the street-name change.
But the family is still waiting.
A year after Emery’s death, Encinitas still has no red-light cameras, and the families and neighbors advocating for them are still waiting for the City Council to act.
John says the family feels disrespected by the lack of action.
Other communities facing similar tragedies have moved quickly to increase awareness and implement safety measures. The Chalekians are still asking their city leaders to do the same.
Emery deserved the chance to grow up. She deserved to dance, to dream, to make friends, to help others and to discover the person she would become.
Her family cannot give her those years back.
But they can fight to make sure her death means something.
They can turn her name into a reminder.
They can turn grief into action.
And they can ask every driver approaching an intersection to remember one simple truth:
Running a red light is never just a traffic violation. It can change a family’s life forever.
For Emery. For John and Bridget. And for every child who deserves to safely cross the street.
This is why safer streets matter. This is why enforcement matters. And this is why communities must act before another family is left asking, “Why didn’t we do more?”
For more details about Safe Streets Encinitas, visit their site – https://safestreetsencinitas.com/
Sign the petition to rename Village Square Drive to Emery’s Crossing here – https://c.org/6VgWCWxSFQ