Jamestown, CA – A fiery motorcycle and SUV crash on Highway 49/108 earlier this week ended with both the driver from Tuolumne and the bike rider from Modesto arrested.
The collision occurred on Monday, January 26, 2026, just before 6 p.m. on the highway near Rawhide Road in Jamestown, with the bike bursting into flames and the rider lying on the ground. CHP spokesperson Officer Steve Machado tells Central Sierra Broadcasting that 41-year-old Tara Van Holland was pulling out of a private drive and left onto the northbound lane of the highway in a Mitsubishi Outlander, south of Rawhide Road. Coming in the opposite direction was 46-year-old Justin Grissom, riding a Kawasaki motorcycle.
Machado relayed, “Van Holland entered the roadway, directly in the path of Grissom’s vehicle. As a result, the front of the Mitsubishi crashed into the front of the motorcycle. After the crash, the motorcycle became fully engulfed in flames.” Grissom suffered minor injuries and was taken to Doctors Medical Center in Modesto for treatment, while Van Holland was uninjured.
Machado disclosed, “During the investigation, it was determined that Van Holland was under the influence of an alcoholic beverage and was placed under arrest on felony charges. Additionally, Grissom was arrested for felony warrants involving grand theft and burglary unrelated to this crash.” Grissom also faces fresh charges for providing false identification to a peace officer. After being released from the hospital, he was booked into the Tuolumne County Jail for those violations.
