SAN DIEGO — Sundays are the hardest days for Angela J. Turner-Sanders.
Sundays are when Turner-Sanders would spend with her 22-year-old daughter, V'Ctorea Ja'Niese Sanders.
That, however, ended on August 26, 2023, when Sanders was electrocuted after the car she was riding in collided with two utility boxes on Euclid Avenue at State Route 94.
More than nine months following her daughter's death, Turner-Sanders is suing San Diego Gas and Electric as well as the City of San Diego for negligence and for failing to address public safety.
"The last time we were together, we went to church," said Turner-Sanders. "I don't know what her last words were but I know that she was on the way home. It's just hard not to have her with me."
The Collision
In the early morning hours of August 26, 2023, V'Ctorea Sanders was the passenger in a Kia Forte, when the driver veered off of Euclid Avenue at State Road 94 and collided with the utility boxes.
The force from the collision knocked the power boxes off of their foundation, exposing high-voltage wires.
Sanders, who was sitting in the front passenger seat at the time, exited the vehicle and unknowingly touched two exposed wires, electrocuting her on the spot.
"I prayed for V'Ctorea while she was living, but right now my prayers are that those who are accountable, be held accountable," said Turner-Sanders.
Among those that need accountability, said Turner-Sanders is the driver of the car, Viviana Rojas, as well as SDG&E and the city.
"SDG&E has yet to put barriers up at the location. Like, what are they waiting on? I need to know how many more lives need to be taken, and how many more mothers like me, need to be hurt."
Added Turner-Sanders, "I know cars have hit these transformers before. This time it took my daughter's life. I need something done."
The Intersection
The intersection where the collision occurred is known to be a high-accident area.
City documents, obtained by CBS 8, show at least one resident submitted requests as far back as 2017 to install traffic calming measures on Euclid at State Route 94.
Additional documents show that the city was already aware of the dangers at the intersection. Since 2012, the city has looked to address what one internal report found was "an uncontrolled intersection with higher-than-average accident rates." As part of the project, the city installed a traffic light at the intersection.
Turner-Sanders says the time it took for the city to attempt to address the dangerous intersection reveals a larger issue within her community.
"This is not fake. This is real," said an emotional Turner-Sanders about living without her daughter. "It takes so much more just to breathe. Just to get up, to sit here in this seat right now and give this interview. It is hard. I'm full of emotions. And I want to know, how many more lives will it take before something is done? You redline this district as if it doesn't exist but we matter."
Attorney Dante Pride from the Pride Law Firm says the boxes' proximity to the road is the problem.
"This is so easy to fix," he said, "One cement bollard could have saved V'Ctorea Sanders' life and that is a problem. The fact is there are a myriad things that could have been done and they didn't get done."
In a statement, an SDG&E spokesperson told CBS 8, "This was a tragic accident and our thoughts are with the family during this difficult time. We cannot comment on pending litigation."
CBS 8 reached out to the City of San Diego but did not receive a reply before publication.