Kings County Judge Charged With Misdemeanor Vehicular Manslaughter in Bicyclist’s Death

California prosecutors filed one misdemeanor count

HANFORD — California Attorney General Rob Bonta's office charged Kings County Superior Court Judge Kendra Weber with one misdemeanor count of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence, alleging that she fatally struck a bicyclist while driving in September 2025.

The California Department of Justice identified the filing as a criminal complaint in Kings County Superior Court. ABC30 and the Los Angeles Times identified the bicyclist as 63-year-old Bryan Leroy Garcia. A complaint is an accusation that begins a criminal case; it is not evidence tested at trial, and Weber is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

The public materials reviewed for this report do not include a plea, arraignment result, trial date or final assignment of the case. They also do not report that Weber has been removed from the bench or that a judicial-discipline body has imposed a sanction.

The crash occurred near Hanford-Armona Road and 16th Avenue

ABC30 reports that the September 2025 collision occurred near Hanford-Armona Road and 16th Avenue in Kings County. The station cites the California Highway Patrol as saying that a car driven by Weber collided with Garcia's bicycle, that Garcia was not wearing a helmet and that Weber remained at the scene.

Those details come from ABC30's account of the CHP investigation; the attorney general's short announcement does not provide the crash location or describe the collision sequence. The filed complaint alleges that Weber drove a vehicle in the commission of an unlawful act but does not publicly identify that alleged act.

No reviewed source alleges intoxication, hit-and-run conduct, intentional striking, street racing or gross negligence. Those facts should not be inferred from the existence of a fatal crash or from Weber's public office.

What ‘without gross negligence’ means in this charge

California Penal Code section 192(c)(2) defines this form of vehicular manslaughter as driving during a nonfelony unlawful act without gross negligence, or driving during a lawful act that might cause death in an unlawful manner without gross negligence. Section 192 also requires the death to be a proximate result of the alleged conduct.

The wording matters. Prosecutors did not charge the gross-negligence form listed in section 192(c)(1), and the filed count is a misdemeanor. Under Penal Code section 193(c)(2), a conviction for section 192(c)(2) may be punished by no more than one year in county jail.

That maximum is not a prediction that Weber will be convicted or jailed. Charging decisions, defenses, plea negotiations and any sentence depend on facts and rulings that are not yet part of the public record reviewed here.

The complaint leaves the alleged traffic violation unspecified

The complaint's reference to an ‘unlawful act’ does not tell readers whether prosecutors allege speeding, an unsafe movement, a right-of-way violation or another traffic offense. The attorney general's office declined to provide the Los Angeles Times with additional circumstances.

That missing detail is significant because the prosecution must prove more than the tragic fact that a collision caused a death. The state must establish the charged statutory elements and connect the alleged driving conduct to Garcia's death beyond a reasonable doubt.

Garcia's reported lack of a helmet is part of ABC30's account, but the reviewed charging announcement does not explain what legal significance, if any, prosecutors or the defense will assign to it. It does not erase the presumption of innocence, establish fault by itself or resolve causation.

Weber's judicial position does not decide the criminal case

Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Weber to the Kings County Superior Court in 2023. Before joining the bench, the Los Angeles Times reports that she worked as an administrative law judge for the Board of Parole Hearings, an attorney for Kings County Child Support Services and a Kings County deputy district attorney.

Her office makes the charge a matter of judicial accountability, but it does not alter the burden of proof. A judge charged with a crime receives the same presumption of innocence as any other defendant, while questions about courtroom assignments or judicial discipline proceed under separate rules and authorities.

The next reliable update should come from a filed court record, an appearance on the docket, a defense response or an official judicial-administration announcement. Until then, claims about motive, special treatment, resignation or punishment would go beyond the confirmed record.

About the image

The accompanying image is an authentic 2007 photograph of the historic Kings County Courthouse in downtown Hanford, built in the 1890s. Photographer Armona released it under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 license through Wikimedia Commons.

The historic building provides geographic context but is not the modern Kings County Superior Court facility where the complaint was filed. The photograph does not show Weber, Garcia, the September 2025 collision, the reported crash location, prosecutors, a court appearance or evidence, and its use does not imply endorsement by the photographer or Wikimedia Commons.