She was left to die in a towed car. A month later, workers found her body.
On December 6, 2023, employees of Allied Gardens Tow Company discovered the decomposed body of 65-year-old Monica Cameroni De Adams in her minivan, which had been towed a month earlier after a drunk driving incident. Initially, her family filed a tort claim against the city of San Diego, alleging police negligence for failing to check the wrecked vehicle for injured occupants following a collision on November 5, 2023, when De Adams was struck while sleeping inside her parked car.
After the crash, the driver, identified as Jordan Lopez, displayed signs of intoxication and admitted to drinking at a bar. Despite the severity of the situation, police officers focused on contacting the owners of the vehicles involved in the accident but neglected to check for individuals inside, allowing the vehicles to be towed with De Adams still trapped. Her family became concerned after she failed to respond to birthday messages and reported her missing on November 13, 2023.
More than a month later, a tow company worker noticed a foul smell and subsequently found De Adams' decomposed body, leading to further investigation by the San Diego County Medical Examiner. The autopsy revealed multiple severe injuries, categorizing her death due to blunt force trauma as an accident. However, her family remained in the dark about the circumstances until they received the Medical Examiner's report nearly a year later.
Lopez eventually accepted a plea deal in connection to the crash, which resulted in a six-year prison sentence and five years of probation. His defense attorneys argued that De Adams was likely alive for some time after the crash, which diminished the likelihood of vehicular manslaughter charges. Sentencing for Lopez is set for March 20.
The San Diego Police Department has declined to comment on the ongoing situation, leaving the family of Cameroni De Adams seeking accountability and answers for the tragic failure to check on her condition after the accident.