A 22-year-old Downey man who drove drunk and caused a fiery crash in Huntington Beach that killed a 20-year-old Cal State Long Beach student was convicted Thursday of vehicular manslaughter and leaving the scene of an accident.
Kenneth John McNair drank heavily for hours before getting behind the wheel of his father's white Honda Accord and slammed it into the back of Jose Pacheco's Ford Mustang at Goldenwest Street and Edinger Avenue Nov. 15, 2008.
McNair's attorney, Rondee J. Eagle, did not contest the vehicular manslaughter charge, but argued that his client did not leave the scene of the accident. Eagle contended that McNair was so drunk he did not realize he had killed Pacheco and did not intend to flee. McNair was also found guilty of driving without a license. He faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 29.
Pacheco, who was stopped at a traffic signal at Goldenwest Street and Edinger Avenue, died when his Mustang exploded into flames about 1:40 a.m.
McNair and his friend walked away, but Huntington Beach police caught up with them a block away, Baez said. About two hours after the accident, McNair's blood-alcohol level was 0.25 percent, more than three times the legal limit for driving, Baez said.
The two men had been playing "beer pong" and drank nine or 10 Bud Light beers Friday night before the early Saturday morning accident. McNair called for a cab and the two went to the Downey Brewing Company, where McNair had another beer.
The two then went back to McNair's home in Downey, but they soon decided they wanted to go out again. That is when McNair borrowed the keys to his father's car so he and his friend could drive to Sharkeez in Huntington Beach, where he had a bloody Mary, his attorney said.
McNair had the number of the cab company committed to memory so he could have avoided
driving drunk, the prosecutor said.
A witness at the scene of the crash told investigators he heard a man say, "Let's get out of here," before walking away from the crash, and the description of the men who walked away matched McNair and his friend, Baez said.
Eagle challenged the witness descriptions, saying they didn't quite match up to what the two were wearing. She also argued that McNair was so drunk at the time he thought the burning car was his father's and was unaware anyone else was hurt in the collision.
Kenneth John McNair drank heavily for hours before getting behind the wheel of his father's white Honda Accord and slammed it into the back of Jose Pacheco's Ford Mustang at Goldenwest Street and Edinger Avenue Nov. 15, 2008.
McNair's attorney, Rondee J. Eagle, did not contest the vehicular manslaughter charge, but argued that his client did not leave the scene of the accident. Eagle contended that McNair was so drunk he did not realize he had killed Pacheco and did not intend to flee. McNair was also found guilty of driving without a license. He faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced Jan. 29.
Pacheco, who was stopped at a traffic signal at Goldenwest Street and Edinger Avenue, died when his Mustang exploded into flames about 1:40 a.m.
McNair and his friend walked away, but Huntington Beach police caught up with them a block away, Baez said. About two hours after the accident, McNair's blood-alcohol level was 0.25 percent, more than three times the legal limit for driving, Baez said.
The two men had been playing "beer pong" and drank nine or 10 Bud Light beers Friday night before the early Saturday morning accident. McNair called for a cab and the two went to the Downey Brewing Company, where McNair had another beer.
The two then went back to McNair's home in Downey, but they soon decided they wanted to go out again. That is when McNair borrowed the keys to his father's car so he and his friend could drive to Sharkeez in Huntington Beach, where he had a bloody Mary, his attorney said.
McNair had the number of the cab company committed to memory so he could have avoided
driving drunk, the prosecutor said.
A witness at the scene of the crash told investigators he heard a man say, "Let's get out of here," before walking away from the crash, and the description of the men who walked away matched McNair and his friend, Baez said.
Eagle challenged the witness descriptions, saying they didn't quite match up to what the two were wearing. She also argued that McNair was so drunk at the time he thought the burning car was his father's and was unaware anyone else was hurt in the collision.
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