Jamul Tribal Chairman and Daughter-In-Law Killed in Motorcycle Crash

By Aaron Poehler

Published on July 08, 2008

A single-vehicle motorcycle wreck has claimed the lives of William C. "Bill" Mesa, chairman of the Jamul Indian Village, along with daughter-in-law Crystal Roberts-Mesa on Lyons Valley Road in Jamul, California.

According to California Highway Patrol spokesmen, Bill Mesa, 57, and Roberts-Mesa, 29, had been at a family gathering Saturday afternoon before leaving on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and crashing into a utility pole on Lyons Valley Road approximately a quarter-mile east of Skyline Truck Trail.

Alcohol is suspected as a factor in the crash, though Cheryl Mesa, Mesa's wife of 31 years, denied the two were intoxicated at the time of the fatal wreck. Toxicology reports regarding the incident are expected in four to six weeks from the San Diego County Medical Examiner's Office.

Mesa, a retired police officer boasting a 20-year record of service, had been involved for years with efforts to build a casino on his tribe's six-acre reservation. San Diego County Second District Supervisor Dianne Jacob stated that while her position often brought her into conflict with him, Mesa worked tirelessly to accomplish what he believed to be the best for his fellow tribe members. Roberts-Mesa was a lifelong East County resident who married Mesa's son, Robert Mesa, less than a year ago. Roberts-Mesa had recently completed her master's degree in public health at San Diego State University.