A UA resident assistant and an unidentified woman died Sunday morning in a motorcycle accident at North Euclid Avenue and East Edison Street.
Joseph Johnson, an economics junior and a Graham-Greenlee Residence Hall RA, and his female passenger were heading north on Euclid Avenue at 2 a.m. when the motorcycle they were riding went off the road and hit a house's brick wall, according to Tucson Police Department reports.
The passengers were thrown from the vehicle.
Michelle Pickrom, TPD spokeswoman, said Johnson died at the scene. The female passenger was taken to the University Medical Center, where she died around 11 a.m.
Johnson was 22 and had been an RA for two years.
Police believe Johnson was not wearing a helmet at the time of impact but that his passenger was, Pickrom said.
Johnson's passenger has not been identified, and police are asking anyone who might know who she is to contact them.
Pickrom said it is unknown whether alcohol was a factor in the accident, and police are still investigating speed as a possible cause.
Taralyn Rogers, a political science junior whose boyfriend lives in the house hit by Johnson, was in the house at the time of the accident.
Rogers said after hearing the crash, she and her boyfriend walked outside and didn't see anything at first.
"Then we saw the bike 300 feet from us; then I saw a helmet and thought, 'Holy shit,'" Rogers said.
Rogers said she and her boyfriend called police after they noticed the two bodies.
When police arrived, Rogers said several people were standing outside, but no one had seen the accident.
"When we first walked outside, there were no cars, no nothing. No one was around," she said. "It's been hard for me and my boyfriend to deal with. It made us aware of how precious and fragile life is."
Tally Milnes, an RA in Graham-Greenlee and a friend of Johnson, said Johnson's memorial service will be held on Thursday at 2 p.m. in the St. Bernadette Church in Scottsdale.
Jim Van Arsdel, director of Residence Life, said he is unsure whether a new RA will take over for Johnson for the last few weeks of school.
"Right now, we're all very sad," he said. "The decision will be made in a couple of days."
Anyone with information on the unidentified female passenger should contact the Tucson Police Department at 791-4461.