Woman Given House Arrest for Manslaughter

A Newport Beach woman who was convicted of running down and killing her stepdaughter’s husband was sentenced Friday to one year of house arrest and three years of probation by a judge who said she was unable to control her bizarre behavior.

Betty Young Davies, 61, had faced a maximum of seven years in prison and a $10,000 fine for her Oct. 18, 1991, conviction for vehicular manslaughter and hit-and-run. James Ward, 31, of Costa Mesa died Dec. 19, 1989, after being hit by Davies’ Mercedes-Benz.

Superior Court Judge John J. Ryan also ordered Davies to pay $7,500 in fines and restitution. Davies must also continue to receive psychiatric treatment, he said, and have no contact with members of the Ward family.

Davies’ first trial ended in a hung jury in March, 1991. Ryan found her guilty during a non-jury trial.

During the first trial, Davies’ stepdaughter, Wendy Ward, 32, testified about a series of harassments until Davies drove to the Ward home and ran down James Ward.

In arguing for a probationary sentence, Davies’ attorney, Marshall M. Schulman, said she was a “troubled person” who had been undergoing treatment since 1986 for “severe psychiatric trauma.”