Nipomo truck driver faces jail time for crash that killed French woman
A Nipomo truck driver who caused a fatal crash that killed a French woman and injured three others in November 2016 faces up to a year in San Luis Obispo County Jail after entering into a plea deal in court last month.
Conrad Derek Evangelista, 54, faced a felony charge of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and a misdemeanor count of reckless driving for the crash that killed Bernadette Brasaqc-Ettcheverry of Biscarrosse, France.
In a deal struck Dec. 20, Evangelista pleaded no contest to the reckless driving charge and a lesser misdemeanor charge of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence. The felony charge was dismissed.
Under terms of the plea, Evangelista is scheduled to be sentenced Feb. 21 to one year in San Luis Obispo County Jail and three years of formal probation. He was also ordered to pay an undetermined amount of restitution.
With time-served and other credits, Evangelista will likely serve about six months and is eligible to apply for alternative sentencing such as home detention.
Jere Sullivan, Evangelista’s attorney, declined to comment on the case Friday.
On the afternoon of Nov. 9, 2016, Evangelista was driving a 2014 Isuzu box truck south on Highway 1 past Cuesta College when he didn’t notice vehicles stopped at a red light in front of him, the California Highway Patrol said at the time. Evangelista’s truck rear-ended a 2016 Chevy Cruze carrying Brasaqc-Ettcheverry and another French citizen, who suffered moderate injuries.
After colliding with the Chevy, Evangelista’s truck continued on to strike another vehicle, injuring its passenger.
Brasaqc-Ettcheverry suffered fatal blunt force trauma to her head and was pronounced dead at the scene.
Her family filed a wrongful death civil lawsuit against Evangelista in March 2017, but the case was dismissed in June, according to San Luis Obispo Superior Court records.
This story was originally published January 5, 2018 at 1:59 PM with the headline "Nipomo truck driver faces jail time for crash that killed French woman."