Two men
face murder
charge after fatal street race
Source: KFMB
San
Diego, CA - TWO MEN FACE MURDER CHARGE AFTER FATAL STREET RACE
Two
men involved in a street race last October that ended with the deaths of
two teens in another vehicle were ordered to stand trial on charges of
second-degree murder.
George
Waller Jr., 32, and Lawrence Calhoun, 29, could get 30 years to life in
prison if convicted for the deaths of Shanna Jump and her boyfriend,
Brian Hanson, both 19.
After
a daylong preliminary hearing, Judge Frederic Link ruled yesterday that
both men should be held to answer murder charges under the implied
malice theory.
"These
gentlemen knew what a speeding car can do," the judge said.
He
said both defendants should also go to trial on the lesser charges of
gross vehicular manslaughter.
Additionally,
Waller and Calhoun are charged with misdemeanor reckless driving for
causing critical brain injuries to Hanson's 17-year-old brother, who was
in the back seat of Jump's car, and facial injuries to Waller's
passenger, Jason Moore.
The
defendants will be back in court February 18 for arraignment in Superior
Court and to get a trial date.
Deputy
District Attorney Blaine Bowman defended his office's decision to charge
Waller and Calhoun with murder.
"This
is a dangerous activity they both engaged in," the prosecutor said.
"The outcome was foreseeable."
Jonathan
Spooner testified that he was driving home about 7 p.m. last October 6,
and preparing to turn left from Imperial Avenue on to Viewcrest Drive,
when he saw two cars accelerating toward him. One had its headlights on,
one did not, he said.
"I
just heard the sound of two engines," Spooner testified. "I
could tell they were gaining speed."
Spooner,
21, said he "stepped on it" to turn left in front of the
oncoming cars, then looked in his rear view mirror and saw Waller's '68
Barracuda, with its lights off, smash into the Geo Storm that Jump was
driving.
"It
(Waller's car) had to be going 100 mph," the witness said.
Questions, comments and
criticisms can be directed to: Jeff
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