UPDATE: Driver faces manslaughter charges in July crash that killed a Cajon student
A Los Angeles man was ordered held to face manslaughter charges today
in the DUI-related death of Cajon High School student earlier this year.
San Bernardino police say Dwight Dalton Davis, 56, plowed through a closed-off lane and into a downtown intersection in a silver Chrysler 300M, driving about 75 mph and against a red light.
The Chrysler crashed into a red Kia Sedona minivan with a driver and two passengers, one of whom was 16-year-old Victoria Lemus. The minivan then struck a full-size Ford pickup that landed on its roof.
San Bernardino police say Dwight Dalton Davis, 56, plowed through a closed-off lane and into a downtown intersection in a silver Chrysler 300M, driving about 75 mph and against a red light.
The Chrysler crashed into a red Kia Sedona minivan with a driver and two passengers, one of whom was 16-year-old Victoria Lemus. The minivan then struck a full-size Ford pickup that landed on its roof.
Davis had tried to walk away from the scene at Fifth and E streets, but
he was chased and tackled by witnesses and a law enforcement officer.
"He was very agitated and uncooperative," testified San Bernardino Officer Joshua Cunningham, about the defendant's condition at the July 1 crash. Davis had very labored breathing and a dry mouth with white discoloration at the edges, he said.
"He could not sit still. He was constantly moving around," Cunningham testified.
Lab results later showed Davis tested positive for cocaine and had a 0.08 blood alcohol content, police officers testified.
Lemus, who was a San Bernardino Rotary Club scholar, was the front passenger in the minivan and had just left a club luncheon downtown. She later died from her injuries at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center.
Two other people in the van were also injured.
At the conclusion of the hearing in San Bernardino Superior Court, Judge Douglas Gericke determined there was sufficient evidence to hold over Davis for trial on four felony counts, including gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.
Lemus' parents were emotional at times during the three-hour proceedings and declined to comment afterward.
If Davis is convicted at trial, he faces a maximum of 17 years in state prison, said Deputy District Attorney Alex Martinez, who is prosecuting the case.
In interviews with police officers, Davis said he did not know why he came to San Bernardino from Los Angeles on the day of the crash.
mike.cruz@inlandnewspapers.com
"He was very agitated and uncooperative," testified San Bernardino Officer Joshua Cunningham, about the defendant's condition at the July 1 crash. Davis had very labored breathing and a dry mouth with white discoloration at the edges, he said.
"He could not sit still. He was constantly moving around," Cunningham testified.
Lab results later showed Davis tested positive for cocaine and had a 0.08 blood alcohol content, police officers testified.
Lemus, who was a San Bernardino Rotary Club scholar, was the front passenger in the minivan and had just left a club luncheon downtown. She later died from her injuries at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center.
Two other people in the van were also injured.
At the conclusion of the hearing in San Bernardino Superior Court, Judge Douglas Gericke determined there was sufficient evidence to hold over Davis for trial on four felony counts, including gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.
Lemus' parents were emotional at times during the three-hour proceedings and declined to comment afterward.
If Davis is convicted at trial, he faces a maximum of 17 years in state prison, said Deputy District Attorney Alex Martinez, who is prosecuting the case.
In interviews with police officers, Davis said he did not know why he came to San Bernardino from Los Angeles on the day of the crash.
mike.cruz@inlandnewspapers.com
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ummm i know why he came to sb the day of the crash to buy drugs and he should be charged w murder instead of manslaughter he knew what he was doing when he was snorting that coke and surely knew driving while high only leads to one thing death and it never is the bad guy dying is it...
I completely agree with you