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Gathuru v. State

The trial court's jury charge on vehicular homicide while driving in a reckless manner, when read and considered as a whole, did not mislead the jury.

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A jury found Ephantus Gathuru guilty of two counts of reckless driving driving too fast for conditions and following too closely and six counts of vehicular homicide. Gathuru appeals, alleging the trial court improperly charged the jury on vehicular homicide, the trial court erred in answering a jury question, and his trial counsel was ineffective. We find no error and affirm Gathuru’s convictions. Viewed in a light most favorable to support the jury’s verdict, the evidence shows that on June 24, 2005, Gathuru, driving an 18-wheel tractor-trailer truck, sped from Interstate 285 into the exit lane for Interstate 20, where numerous cars were backed up with their brake lights on. According to all but one eyewitness, Gathuru did not brake before hitting the last car in line at the exit. In all, eight vehicles were involved in the incident, and three deaths occurred as a result of the incident. All eyewitnesses agreed that Gathuru was traveling too fast to stop when he came into the exit lane.

An expert in commercial vehicle accident investigations testified that based on the circumstances and evidence, Gathuru was driving too fast for the conditions and following too closely. Another traffic specialist testified that his investigation of the scene revealed that Gathuru was traveling over the posted speed limit, Gathuru did not apply his brakes until the point of first impact, and there was no evidence to support Gathuru’s claim that a vehicle pulled out in front of him and caused the incident.

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