MANTECA -- Sven and Liz Rafferty moved
a year and a half ago from San Jose to Manteca in search of a lower
mortgage, wide-open spaces and a close-knit neighborhood where they could
raise a family.
They weren't alone.
Three other families made the move with them about the same time to the
same quiet neighborhood -- and the promise of a new chapter in their
lives. Liz got pregnant, and so did one of her friends who made the move,
Christine Watts -- the first child for each. They planned for the future.
They even considered starting their own neighborhood-based Bible
fellowship.
The only sticking point to their plan, as it is to thousands of other
Bay Area people who make similar moves, was the commute. Liz would
typically rise at 3 a.m., and Sven at 3:30; they would pick up Christine
for what would be a 76-mile, one-way trip to Sven's tech job in Palo Alto,
dropping the women off at their jobs in Sunnyvale.
That commute nearly killed the Raffertys -- and it did kill the
26-year-old Watts and her unborn baby.
All of their lives were indelibly altered on July 19. About 4:45 a.m.
that day, the three, riding in a dark green 1997 Volkswagen Jetta, were
stopped on Interstate 580, east of Interstate 680 and west of Hopyard
Road, when a 2000 Volvo tractor-trailer driven by Larry E. Milliron, whose
71,150 pound-rig was loaded with carpet, struck them at a speed that could
have been 55 mph to 65 mph.
Watts was pronounced dead at the scene at 5:02 a.m. Her widower, Jason,
still can't talk about it.
The Raffertys and Jason Watts have since sued Milliron and his
employer, Watkins & Shepard, a trucking company based in Missoula,
Mont. In the suit, they allege Milliron had been cited for speeding April
8, 1999, and Feb. 12 of this year. Milliron has pleaded not guilty.
Milliron's attorney, Daniel Russo of Vallejo, did not return a telephone
call.
Watkins & Shepard corporate secretary Ken Crippen said he could not
comment on the suit or the criminal charge pending against Milliron. But
he did say the company had only had only one similar accident previously
and that safety is a priority. "We take it very seriously," he said.
Milliron told California Highway Patrol investigators that the
Raffertys' Volkswagen moved directly in front of him, and that he began to
slow and then struck it when the car slowed suddenly.
A witness told the CHP Milliron's big rig passed him and then veered
into his lane, forcing the witness to the shoulder to avoid a collision.
After veering in front of him, that witness told the CHP, Milliron then
struck the Volkswagen.
The CHP quoted Milliron as saying he made the Los Angeles to Hayward
trip three times a week and was aware early morning commute traffic slowed
at the Interstate 580-680 interchange.
Sven, meanwhile, began a fight for his life. He suffered concussions to
the back and right side of his head, his upper-left arm was shattered (a
titanium rod was later inserted), his right collarbone was broken and his
lungs were severely injured. "It still hurts to sneeze," he said.
"For three days, they didn't know if he would walk," Liz recalled,
because of nerve damage in his back and because three vertebrae were
broken. He spent nine days in the intensive-care unit at Eden Medical
Center and seven more at a hospital in Manteca. Family and friends helped
feed them and run their errands until they recovered enough to take their
lives back.
Sven was given medication that erased his memory of the crash. "It's
not hard to drive by the accident spot," said Sven, which he does two days
a week (he telecommutes three days a week). "What's hard for me is knowing
Christine's gone," Sven said. "I didn't even get to say good-bye," because
he couldn't leave the hospital for her funeral.
"It's exactly the opposite for me," Liz said. "I'm scared when he gets
into a car. So, I'm really trying to trust God."
The investigators soon found out that although Milliron, 56, listed his
address as Sheridan, Wyo., he lives in Benicia with his family. They also
discovered his California driver's license had been suspended in 1996,
although he had a valid Wyoming license.
The CHP concluded Milliron was fatigued when the crash happened, and
arrested him on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter. He was later released
from Santa Rita Jail after posting bail.
When Milliron appeared in court days later for arraignment, Alameda
County Superior Court Judge Ronald Hyde ordered him back into custody in
lieu of $100,000 bail. Hyde later lowered Milliron's bail to $50,000 but
ordered that he not drive in California.
Scott Marshall covers crime and courts. Reach him at 925-847-2164 or smarshall2@cctimes.com.
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