Student Sues Deputy Dist. Atty. Who Allegedly Drove Into Him

A Saddleback College student has filed a lawsuit against an Orange County deputy district attorney, alleging that she intentionally struck him with her van as he walked through a crowded campus parking lot last summer.

John Stevens, 22, who said his knee was injured in the July 20, 1993, incident, is seeking unspecified damages from Kelly MacEachern and her husband, Neil.

Donald E. Connors, who is representing Stevens, said Thursday that his client is making a good recovery and that he is optimistic the suit will be settled out of court.

“He’s playing basketball again--that was his big concern,” Connors said.

MacEachern, a 12-year veteran of the Orange County district attorney’s office, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

In December, a South Orange County Municipal Court jury acquitted MacEachern of a misdemeanor charge of reckless driving in connection with the incident. The trial included two days of dramatically conflicting testimony.

Stevens testified that MacEachern hit him with her van while trying to get to a parking space and that she looked him in the eye as she drove forward.

In court, MacEachern denied hitting Stevens and said she did not see him until he was spread-eagled across the hood of her van and pounding on the windshield, then yelling that she had stolen the parking space from another driver. She had been taking three of her five children to swimming lessons.