Lies Nag Trial of Former Deputy : Courts: Fellow lawmen testifying in fatal crash give conflicting testimony on ex-sergeant’s state of intoxication.

The trial of a former Los Angeles County sheriff’s sergeant accused of causing a fatal drunk driving crash is expected to wind to a close next week amid allegations that some of his fellow deputies at the Pico Rivera station lied on the witness stand.

Dennis Max Howell allegedly had a blood-alcohol level of 0.23%--almost three times the current legal limit--on Aug. 24, when the vehicle he was driving slammed into a disabled car on the shoulder of the San Gabriel River Freeway, killing the driver.

Howell, 47, a 21-year-veteran who retired after the incident, faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison if convicted of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.

The crash has been frequently overshadowed by questions of perjury after a week of testimony in Pomona Superior Court, prompting a review of the case by the sheriff’s Internal Affairs Bureau.

At least six deputies have directly contradicted each other while testifying about Howell’s state of intoxication, persuading attorneys on both sides that some officers are not telling the truth.

“Someone’s lying . . . and it’s very awkward,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Donald S. Jakubowski, who will make his closing arguments Tuesday. “There’s this confusion among people you would not expect this type of confusion from.”

The crash occurred shortly before 3:45 a.m., after Howell left a Santa Fe Springs restaurant where he was celebrating his transfer from traffic sergeant in the Pico Rivera station to the department’s new drug-testing program at the Hall of Justice in downtown Los Angeles.

Howell’s lawyer, Jeffrey J. Douglas, has conceded that Howell was legally drunk and was the driver of the car that struck Santiago Herrera, 28, of Lakewood. But Douglas is arguing that Howell merely exercised poor judgment, not gross negligence.

The disputed testimony is significant because it addresses Howell’s negligence, and could mean the difference between the 10-year sentence and a maximum three-year sentence for simple vehicular manslaughter.

Deputies Thomas Fisher and Victor Naranjo have testified that they spent about 45 minutes in the parking lot talking with Howell before he drove away that night. Both have testified that Howell showed no signs of intoxication and that there was no reason to discourage him from getting behind the wheel.

“If I would have realized there was an impairment, we would have taken his keys, driven him home, whatever it took,” Fisher testified.

However, the same two deputies privately conceded that they believed Howell was drunk and that they took, or considered taking, steps to keep him from driving, according to testimony by two sergeants.

Sgt. Michael Herek, a 14-year veteran, said Fisher told him he had thought of punching out Howell so that he could not drive. “He told me that he wanted to restrain Howell . . . and he had discussed (that) with Deputy Naranjo,” Herek said.

Sgt. Steve Lee, a 20-year veteran, testified that he had a similar conversation with the two deputies, although he acknowledged that he had told the officers their comments would remain “off the record.”

Nonetheless, Lee documented their statements in a memo, indicating that Fisher and Naranjo believed Howell was so intoxicated that they physically removed him from his car, took his keys and offered to give him a ride home.

Most of the memo, however, was ruled inadmissible by Judge Alfonso M. Bazan because Lee testified that he could not specifically recall who said what.

A copy of the memo reviewed by The Times shows that the deputies reportedly told Lee they thought Howell was depressed and was drinking heavily because he believed there wasn’t much of a turnout at his send-off party.

“They told him he shouldn’t drive and Tom offered to drive him home,” the memo reads. “Denny declined, saying something to the effect of, ‘I’ve done this 1,000 times; I’ll be OK.’ ”

After taking his keys, Naranjo and Fisher persuaded Howell to stay and talk so he could sober up, the memo says. But when Naranjo and Fisher turned to say goodby to some other deputies, Howell grabbed the keys and drove off, the memo said.

Lee testified that he wrote the memo after interviewing the deputies at the request of Lt. Juan Rodriguez, who was acting captain of the Pico Rivera station at the time of the crash. In another twist, Rodriguez testified that he never made any such request.

“Obviously, it’s a concern of ours that someone is not telling the court the facts as everyone understands them,” Rodriguez said in an interview.

Even an official with the department’s Internal Affairs Bureau said he was surprised that the testimony was so conflicting. “That causes me some concern,” said Lt. Bill McSweeney. “This case will be reviewed--you can bet on it.”

For his part, Howell, who lives in Claremont with his wife and two children, has testified that he cannot recall how many beers he had that night. He said he felt his alcohol level was not above 0.14%--though still higher than the legal limit of 0.08%.

He also said that neither Naranjo nor Fisher expressed any concern about his condition. The last thing he said he remembers is setting the cruise control on his new Ford Taurus at 60 m.p.h. and heading north on the freeway toward home.

“When I drove away, I did not feel I was impaired,” said Howell, adding, “I wouldn’t have driven . . . if I felt I had been a danger.”

According to CHP investigators, Howell’s car was traveling about 80 m.p.h. when it suddenly veered off the freeway, hit a curb and headed straight for Herrera’s disabled car on the shoulder, causing it to explode on impact.

Howell, who was wearing his seat belt and whose car was equipped with an air bag, escaped with minor burns. Herrera, who had a wife and two young children, was burned beyond recognition.

His widow, Aura, said Herrera was headed to his 3 a.m. job as a baker at a Pavilions grocery store in Monrovia when the car broke down. Just minutes before the collision, a CHP officer had stopped to assist Herrera and arranged for his brother-in-law to pick him up.

“They always tell you not to drink and drive,” Aura Herrera said. “This man should have known better.”