Obituaries

Friends Remember Priscilla Ruiz, 19

Priscilla Ruiz, 19, was a Redondo Shores High School graduate who loved hanging out with her friends and going to the beach.

The community is mourning the death of graduate Priscilla Ruiz, who was killed at about 3 a.m. Saturday when her car and a taxi collided near the intersection of Grant Avenue and Rindge Lane in North Redondo Beach.

On Saturday evening, hundreds of people attended a candlelight memorial in her honor. To accommodate the mourners, officers from the blocked off part of Grant Avenue.

Friends at the makeshift memorial set up in her honor at the intersection described Ruiz, who had just celebrated her 19th birthday, as a shy and quiet young woman who got along with everyone.

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"She was friends with everyone," said Selena Padilla, who later added, "We used to hang out every day after school."

"She was my best friend," Brooke Seaton said. "Everyone likes her, no one hates her."

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Seaton and Padilla painted a picture of Ruiz as a bright young woman who loved hanging out with her friends, going to the beach, being with her family and doing makeup. She earned good grades while she was at Shores, and after graduation, she worked at McDonalds while taking courses at El Camino College.

"Out of everyone, she does not deserve this whatsoever," said Seaton.

Her boyfriend, Ricky Evans, was the love of her life, Padilla said.

The night of the crash, she had been driving home after dropping Evans off at his home, her friends said. They had been celebrating his birthday at Club Dulce in Hollywood, Evans told the Easy Reader on Saturday.

She was only a few blocks from her house when the collision occurred.

This was her second car accident in seven months, said Seaton. In the first, the airbags in her car didn't deploy, and her head went through the windshield. Her friends recalled bringing her balloons and well wishes.

Now, they're leaving candles, flowers, stuffed animals, photos and letters at a memorial on Grant Avenue.

"It still feels like a dream, like it's not real," Seaton said.

Editor's note: This article has been edited to reflect that Ruiz was a graduate of Redondo Shores High School, not Redondo Union. We regret the error.


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