Trucking Firm to Be Tried for Manslaughter
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A Westlake Village trucking company facing manslaughter charges in connection with a February 2000 crash that killed one of its drivers lost a motion this week to dismiss the case.
R.P. Cummings Inc. had argued there was not enough evidence to hold the corporation criminally liable.
But Ventura County Superior Court Judge Barry B. Klopfer ruled the firm could be prosecuted. Klopfer cited the company’s history of brake repairs as well as its directives to drivers ordering them not to document problems found during inspections.
The ruling Thursday is the latest twist in an unusual case.
Last summer, another judge dismissed the criminal complaint.
But the Ventura County district attorney’s office appealed, and Presiding Superior Court Judge Bruce A. Clark ruled there was sufficient evidence to prosecute the company.
Patrick Hildebrand, a 41-year-old Ventura resident, died when he lost control of a company-owned tanker truck on a steep grade near Santa Paula and crashed into a creek. Prosecutors contend the brakes failed because of poor maintenance.
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