Paso driver who allegedly caused Cambria crash killed another motorist on Hwy. 1 in 2011
Update. 1 p.m.: Residents of Cambria have created a GoFundMe account for Jeffrey LaChance’s recovery fund, noting that LaChance suffered life-threatening injuries in Saturday’s crash and has been transferred to a facility in Fresno.
The webpage reads:
“Jeff LaChance is a beloved and vital member of the Cambria, California community as well as a Board member of the Lions Club of Cambria and very involved in supporting its fundraising activities. He is a highly skilled self-employed handyman who many people, seniors and business owners alike, depend upon to make repairs and maintain their homes and property. He is also a selfless friend to many, always volunteering to help others in time of need.
“On January 6, 2020, he was involved in a near fatal collision on Hwy 1 in Cambria while driving his work van and had to be extricated from the van with the jaws of life. He was transported to the local trauma center with life threatening injuries. His injuries were so severe, he had to be evacuated by air to a better equipped hospital in Fresno, California where he will undergo surgery and begin his recovery.
“Unfortunately, being self-employed, he does not have a continuing source of income while he is healing. We need to help him financially while he recovers and prepares to return to work. His injuries are serious and recovery will take many months. He worked from his van and depended on it to carry his tools. The van was a total loss and we do not know how many of his tools were damaged or lost in the accident. We want to make sure he can to work as soon as he is able.
“Please generously donate to help him stay afloat while he begins the long road to recovery. He will appreciate every donation, and knowing him, will give back to the community far more than he receives. Thank you for helping him in this very difficult time.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, 22 donors had contributed $2,535 of a $50,000 goal.
Original Story: A Paso Robles man who the CHP says caused a crash on Highway 1 Monday that injured two had previously caused another crash near the same stretch that killed a woman in 2011, court records show.
The 2011 head-on crash that killed a Pennsylvania woman was caused by Jeffrey Paul LaChance’s unsafe passing in the two-lane section of the highway between Hearst Castle and San Simeon.
The case led to a civil lawsuit in which a Paso Robles jury found the stretch was “in a dangerous condition” for unsafe passing.
The CHP said LaChance, 63, of Paso Robles, was admitted Monday to Sierra Vista Regional Medical Center in San Luis Obispo with serious injuries. A spokesman for the hospital said Tuesday that LaChance was treated and transferred to another facility; the hospital was not able to elaborate on his condition.
LaChance was convicted in 2012 of two misdemeanor counts of vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence and reckless driving for the death of 63-year-old Joan Fuller of Emmaus, Pennsylvania. Fuller was killed instantly after LaChance crashed head-on into her vehicle while attempting to pass a tour bus, according to Tribune archives.
In Monday’s crash, the California Highway Patrol said LaChance was driving a 2017 Ford Transit van westbound on Weymouth Street approaching the Highway 1 intersection around 9:35 a.m.
The agency says he did not see a 2010 Freightliner MT45 delivery truck driving northbound on Highway 1 at the same time, and turned right onto the highway directly in front of the truck.
According to CHP, the front end of the delivery truck hit the right side of the van, which overturned and crashed into a wooden power pole before coming to rest on its roof.
LaChance had to be extricated from the van before being transported to Sierra Vista. The driver of the delivery truck, 35-year-old Rafael Garcia was able to take himself to Twin Cities Community Hospital in Templeton with minor injuries.
Both drivers were wearing seat belts at the time of the crash, and alcohol and drugs are not believed to have played a role.
The downed power line blocked Highway 1 for less than an hour.
The crash occurred just south of the same stretch of Highway 1 where LaChance was involved in the head-on collision in 2011 that killed Fuller and injured her husband, 61-year-old Peter Fuller, also of Emmaus, Pennsylvania.
LaChance was initially charged with a felony in the crash but later pleaded no contest to the two misdemeanor counts. He was sentenced in September 2012 to one day in County Jail (with credit for one day served), five years of informal probation, perform 200 hours of community service, and pay an undisclosed amount of restitution, court records show.
According to the lawsuit filed by Joan Fuller’s family, that crash occurred near mile marker “1 SLO 55.50.” The lawsuit claimed there were no mechanical defects found in either vehicle, and that LaChance, a former volunteer firefighter in Cambria, had driven that section of road for nearly 20 years, he told the CHP.
CHP investigators found that LaChance accelerated to approximately 79 mph trying to overtake the tour bus, and the Fullers’ Camry was driving at or below the speed limit of 55 mph, the lawsuit says. According to Fuller’s attorneys, the black box on Fuller’s vehicle showed that he didn’t apply his brakes until 1.8 seconds before impact.
Fuller remained in intensive care for more than a week and has required 24-hour care ever since the crash due to severe and permanent brain injuries, his attorney said in December 2017.
The lawsuit alleged that Caltrans was negligent in maintaining that section of highway, calling it a “grossly inappropriate” place for a passing zone.
After a monthlong trial in Paso Robles, jurors agreed with Fuller that the stretch of highway was “in a dangerous condition” at the time of the crash, but they did not find there was “a reasonable, foreseeable risk of injury” that would be required to hold state transportation officials liable for damages.
A Caltrans spokesman was not immediately available for information about whether that stretch has been re-striped.
Staff Writer Kaytlyn Leslie contributed to this report.
This story was originally published January 8, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
