Jeffrey Woods Gets 6 Years

Law Offices of William W. Bruzzo — Mon, 21 Dec 2009 01:07:00 GMT

Remember Jeffrey Woods? He was the guy who caused an accident which killed 14-year-old Danny Oates as he was riding his bike in Orange County, California. On December 11, 2009, I was present at his sentencing as Orange County Superior Court Judge Marc Kelly ordered Woods to serve six years in state prison for the crime of vehicular manslaughter (Vehicle Code Section 192.5) with gross negligence while intoxicated. Apparently, Woods had been on his cell phone sending text messages while driving under the influence of two prescription drugs when the accident happened. The case was the Orange County District Attorney’s Office first prosecution of a felony manslaughter jury trial that involved text messaging.

The judge told Woods, “What caused this accident was your selfishness, your careless indifference for human life.” Despite the judge’s harsh words, he refused to give Woods the maximum sentence of 10 years as he had no criminal history before the fatal crash which took place on August 29, 2007. Woods’ own father told the judge that his son “deserved prison time” because he needed to be held accountable for his actions. Bob Woods further extended his sympathies to the Oates family, saying: “We haven’t gone an hour without thinking of you guys.”

Friends and family on both sides spent more then two hours during the sentencing telling the judge how Danny Oates’ death has not only changed their lives but their community. It was a tearful room with Kleenex being constantly passed around.

Jeffrey Woods’ neighbors, friends and former teacher said he was a kind and compassionate man who helped others and had no malicious bone in his body. Woods was also sentenced to three years parole, had his driver’s license revoked for three years and will be required to pay $28,000 in restitution to the Oates family.

Text Messaging and Driving Recklessly Deadly Combination

Law Offices of William W. Bruzzo — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 04:56:00 GMT

A jury has convicted Jeffrey Woods of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence while intoxicated PC 191.5 (a) for the incident occurring in August of 2007. The truck Woods was driving crashed into the side walk and hit a 14-year old on his bike. Woods was on Vicodin and Xanax while also text messaging and driving recklessly, a deadly combination. The defense argued that Woods has epilepsy and that it was a seizure that made him lose control of the vehicle. The argument then becomes whether it was the drugs and multitasking during driving that caused the accident or if it was a seizure. According to the Criminal Jury instructions the prosecutor must prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a defendant is guilty. Meanwhile, the defense presents an alternative reasonable conclusion that points to the innocence of the defendant. The O.C. Register article on the case quoted a juror who explained that “there were some inconsistencies with the amount of seizures and whether they did happen or didn’t happen”. The evidence presented by the defense was not enough to sway the jury to another reasonable explanation for what happened.

Mr. Woods faces up to 10 years in prison for this offense.

jeffrey-woods - Law Offices of William W. Bruzzo

Jeffrey Woods Gets 6 Years

Text Messaging and Driving Recklessly Deadly Combination