Posted on 08/02/2008 6:56:11 PM PDT by ButThreeLeftsDo
Franco was driving van, and not a passenger, state investigator says......
Olga Franco was already in the driver's seat of her boyfriend's minivan — and couldn't have been thrown into it — during the collision with a school bus this winter, a crash expert testified Friday.
The details of the crash came on the second day of Franco's trial in Kandiyohi County, where she faces charges in the Feb. 19 accident that killed four children near Cottonwood.
It was also the newest bit of testimony to put Franco into the driver's seat of the van, a place defense attorney Manuel Guerrero wants to reserve for Franco's boyfriend and the owner of the van, Francisco Sangabriel-Mendoza.
Prosecutor Rick Maes has already brought in witnesses who said Franco was in the driver's seat immediately after the crash and had to be extricated by rescue workers.
Minnesota State Patrol trooper Paul Skoglund, a crash reconstructionist who used surveying tools, a computer plotting program and trigonometry to re-create the collision, said the minivan was traveling between 46 and 50 mph just before it hit the school bus.
It acted as a wedge, driving under the Lakeview School District bus, lifting it up and flipping it over. As the van struck the rear axle of the bus, the van's airbags likely went off, he said.
The van then spun 270 degrees before coming to a rest in the road, he said.
The principal direction of movement for people or objects in the van would have been nearly straight ahead during the crash, he said.
(Excerpt) Read more at twincities.com ...
That one made big news because it was 4 killed (and it should) but just 3 or 4 days later a Michigan kid was killed when he was was run over a dragged under the car of an illegal working at a Michigan vegetable farm.
I have not forgotten, FRiend.....
That is exactly why I continue to post updates so that no one here forgets.
I just don’t understand why more families aren’t suing the companies that hire (enable) these people who are killing Americans.
And law enforcement had her in custody previously and turned her loose without checking her status.....
The system isn’t broken.
It’s non-existant.
I keep getting the feeling that the tide is about to turn in this country.
I hope that I’m right.
Suing? Lawsuits my patoot! Try "true cause and complaint for violation of the RICO statutes". Criminal proceedings, with lengthy prison terms, or even death penalties, where applicable, would get their attention real quick...
the infowarrior
bump
thank you for keeping up with this
i live in az, but i think about those children
My pleasure...
If it gets boring, please let me know....
And law enforcement had her in custody previously and turned her loose without checking her status.....
The system isn’t broken.
It’s non-existant.
Most likely her status wasn’t checked because many of the cities and counties here in MN are “sanctuary cities and counties” Law Enforcement aren’t ALLOWED to ask.
Willmar / Gag order issued in Olga Franco trial
Agent: Franco's boyfriend fled to Mexico after fatal school bus crash
and I thank you for doing that. I haven't been paying attention lately as I see a trial started last Friday. I'll use the keywords and catch up. Thanks again.
The defense must have had this information before starting trial. How could a competent lawyer allow his client to continue to claim she wasn’t driving when there is incontrovertible evidence that she was? Disbar this buy(or gal) It is a disgrace to its profession.
Monday update: The defense is presenting its case and continues to ignore the fact that Franco was completely pinned into the driver’s seat and had to be cut out of the vehicle by emergency responders......
http://www.startribune.com/local/26247499.html?location_refer=Homepage:highlightModules:1
Tuesday Update......
Franco tells jury she wasn’t driving......
The suspect in the fatal Cottonwood bus crash took the stand today and said her boyfriend was driving.
http://www.startribune.com/local/26283319.html?location_refer=Homepage:highlightModules:1
this garbage must be so heart-wrenching to the parents of the children
are the mexican consulate or mexican interests involved at all in paying for her defense?
L
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