Not Guilty Plea Entered In Fatal San Fernando Valley Road Rage Crash
Two men have pleaded not guilty to charges that they caused a fatal San Fernando Valley road rage crash that killed a 5-year-old boy and seriously injured the boy’s mother and infant sister, according to an article posted on KCBS TV’s Web site .
Brian Barnes, 44 and 19-year-old Armando Ayon both face one count of murder and vehicular manslaughter and three counts of reckless driving, the article states. In addition, officials have charged Barnes with three counts of leaving the scene of an accident. The Oct. 9 incident reportedly began when the two men got in a fight as they were each driving in their respective vehicles.
Suddenly, they started driving erratically and were weaving in and out of traffic at a high rate of speed – reportedly between 50 and 90 miles per hour, all the time trying to cut each other off, police said. The incident came to a tragic end when Barnes suddenly hit the brakes and Ayon in an attempt to avoid his vehicle, slammed into the rear of a parked car. That car in turn plowed into another vehicle crushing the boy, Ayman, his sister Ikra Arif and their 31-year-old mother, Syeda Arif, officials said.
The injured were then transported to a local hospital. Ayman died and his mother and sister reportedly suffered critical injuries. Both men are being held in lieu of $1 million bail. There is no question that these are grave charges and if convicted, both men face some serious prison time.
The best thing anyone charged with a serious traffic-related crime or driving-related crime can do is to hire an experienced and knowledgeable criminal defense attorney who can thoroughly investigate the case including detailed reconstruction of the accident. We are in a unique position of successfully handling vehicular manslaughter cases both as prosecutors and defense attorneys. We also work with some of the top collision and alcohol experts in the state. We have former district attorneys and former police investigators on our team.
If you or a loved one has been charged with a Southern California driving-related crime call us for a free consultation right away. We have one goal and that is to get you the best possible result on your case and keep you out of jail.
