An 18-year-old Fort Lauderdale man died early Sunday after a Corvette struck the e-bike he was riding on in Boca Raton, while a 16-year-old rider on the same bike was hospitalized in stable condition. Police identified the passenger who died as Kenneth Donahue, and said he was pronounced dead at the scene on West Palmetto Park Road.
The crash happened shortly before 2 a.m. on West Palmetto Park Road between Interstate 95 and Military Trail, according to BocaPost. Police said a blue 2025 Corvette was traveling east on West Palmetto Park Road when the car struck the e-bike, which was carrying both teenagers. The e-bike's rider, a 16-year-old from Boca Raton, was taken to a local hospital and was in stable condition, per the same report.
Police identified the Corvette's driver as James H. Moore, 23, of Boca Raton, and said he was not injured in the crash. The department's Traffic Homicide Unit is investigating, though the release did not say which direction the e-bike was traveling, where on the roadway the two vehicles collided, or what led up to the crash, BocaPost reported.
A County Already Grappling With a Spike in Injuries
The fatal crash lands in the middle of mounting alarm over e-bike and scooter safety across Palm Beach County. WFLX reported that the Health Care District of Palm Beach County has documented 613 micromobility-related injuries since January 2023, with 59% involving children ages 12 to 15. The station also reported eight micromobility-related deaths between January 2025 and September 2026.
Trauma-center numbers tell a similarly steep story, though two outlets give different counts for the same year. The TAPinto Boca Raton report on this crash cited a figure of 40 people transported to trauma centers in 2023 with injuries involving e-bikes or scooters, while WPTV separately reported 29 people taken to Palm Beach County trauma centers that year with e-bike injuries specifically. WPTV reported that figure more than doubled to 66 in 2024.
WPBF reported a different measure of e-bike and e-scooter injuries countywide, counting 81 in 2024 and a 155% jump to 207 in 2025. A 2026 study snippet cited in the dossier found that estimated annual nationwide emergency-room visits involving e-bikes rose 389% between 2020 and 2024, though that figure carries lower confidence than the local trauma-center data.
Boca Raton Police Already Stepping Up Patrols
Even before Sunday's crash, Boca Raton police had been responding to a wave of e-bike-related calls. The department reported responding to at least 51 calls involving e-bikes over the previous year, according to WPTV's earlier report on local enforcement efforts.
The crash also follows a separate, serious collision just weeks earlier outside Boynton Beach. On September 10, an e-bicycle rider was critically injured after colliding with an SUV turning into the entrance of Temple Torah on South Jog Road, according to The Boca Raton Tribune.
County Weighs New Rules for Young Riders
Palm Beach County commissioners have been moving toward tighter regulation of e-bikes and scooters in recent weeks. A proposal was approved on first reading by a 7-0 vote and was set to return for additional consideration before becoming final, WFLX reported on October 20. It is not clear from available reporting whether the ordinance has since been finalized.
As drafted, the ordinance would set a minimum rider age of 14 and establish speed limits for bicycle paths and shared-use areas, including a 10 mph cap within 50 feet of pedestrians, per WFLX. Initial enforcement would focus on education, outreach, safety campaigns and helmet distribution rather than immediately ticketing young riders, the station reported.
Boca Raton's Traffic Homicide Unit continues to investigate Sunday's crash that killed Donahue. Anyone with information has been asked to call police at 561-419-4124.
