Woman, 78, Faces Manslaughter Charge in Crash That Killed Deputy
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Prosecutors on Friday filed a misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter charge against a 78-year-old Laguna Woods woman who allegedly ran a red light last year and fatally struck a sheriff’s deputy on a motorcycle.
The deputy, Steven Parsons, a 10-year veteran, died five days after being hit by Sylvia Steinhardt’s Oldsmobile sedan, which was traveling about 50 mph on Moulton Parkway in Aliso Viejo.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Elizabeth Henderson said Steinhardt ran the red light, but her actions did not amount to gross negligence, which would have warranted a felony charge.
Gross negligence charges, she said, are more likely to be filed in drunk-driving cases or crashes that occur during police pursuits.
“Under these circumstances this is the appropriate charges to file,” she said.
If convicted, Steinhardt could be sentenced to up to a year in jail. She is set to be arraigned Tuesday.
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