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Sheree Lee Fishgold

Age : 62

Gender : Female

Race : White

Date : 06/06/2021

Location : Highway 58 east of Broome Road

City : Tehachapi

County : Kern

State : Arkansas

Agency : Barstow Police Department; California Highway Patrol

Officer(s) :Not Disclosed

Cause of Death : Vehicle

Event : Passenger killed by police chase crash

OPEN RECORDS SUMMARY :

REASON FOR CHASE: Barstow police pursued a driver who allegedly accelerated toward an officer responding to a threats call at Walmart; the 97-mile pursuit ended in the death of bystander Sheree Fishgold.
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NARRATIVE:
On 06/06/2021, 62-year-old Sheree Lee Fishgold of Tehachapi was killed when a Chevrolet Tahoe fleeing police traveled the wrong way on Highway 58 and crashed head-on into the Nissan Murano occupied by Fishgold and her husband, Ron.
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The encounter began at approximately 9:21 p.m., when a Barstow police officer responded to a report of a person making threats in a Walmart parking lot. The Kern County District Attorney's Office reported that the Tahoe driver accelerated toward the officer's patrol vehicle. The officer turned around and initiated a pursuit.
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The pursuit continued from Barstow along I-40, I-15 and Highway 58 into Kern County, covering approximately 97 miles. During the pursuit, the fleeing driver exited westbound Highway 58 and entered an eastbound on-ramp traveling west against traffic.
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At approximately 11:11 p.m., the fleeing Tahoe deliberately collided head-on with the Fishgolds' Nissan Murano on Highway 58 east of Broome Road. Sheree Fishgold was pronounced dead at the scene. Ron Fishgold was severely injured and remained unconscious for approximately two weeks.
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Sheree and Ron Fishgold were longtime publishers of Bear Tracks, the Bear Valley Springs community publication. Following the crash, the Bear Valley Springs Association described them as pillars of the Tehachapi community who had spent years connecting residents, businesses and community organizations.
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DISPOSITION:
In September 2025, a Kern County jury convicted the fleeing driver of first-degree murder, attempted murder, evading a peace officer causing death, evading causing serious bodily injury, wrong-way driving, reckless evading, firearm possession and assault with an automobile.
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OFFICER BACKGROUND:
The Barstow police officer who initiated the pursuit was not publicly identified in the sources located.

SOURCE LINKS :

https://www.kerncounty.com/home/showpublisheddocument/21488/638926766769300000
https://www.turnto23.com/news/local-news/62-year-old-woman-from-tehachapi-killed-in-accident-on-highway-58
https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/closing-arguments-begin-man-charged-180202530.html
https://global-uploads.webflow.com/5d98b3b5c33c89b16a73e6ca/60da361a30fffa175bc25a33_BearTracks_July_2021_lowres%20%281%29.pdf
https://www.jtlegalgroup.com/manuel-gutierrez-arrested-for-wrong-way-crash-in-tehachapi-ca/