Second Driver in Crash With Fistell Charged in Death

The second driver in the February traffic collision involving radio talk show host Ira Fistell was charged Thursday with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter by the Los Angeles city attorney’s office.

Josh DeJean, 19, who suffered a broken bone in his neck in the collision that resulted in the death of his passenger, Janna Banks, 16, faces a maximum penalty of one year in jail if convicted on the single count, according to Deputy City Atty. Ellen Sarmiento.

“We believe his actions proximately caused the death, primarily because of the speed he was driving,” Sarmiento said. A reconstruction of the accident showed that DeJean was traveling more than 20 m.p.h. above the 35 m.p.h. speed limit when the accident occurred at Venice and Hauser boulevards.

KABC host Fistell and his wife, Tonda, have pleaded not guilty to felony hit and run charges and are scheduled to be in court in August for a preliminary hearing. Fistell was charged with failing to notify authorities that he was involved in the collision before hopping into a cab and reporting for his late-night, on-air radio shift. His wife is accused of aiding and abetting Fistell by informing police she was the driver even though she did not arrive at the scene until after the accident.

Prosecutors say they did not file manslaughter charges against Fistell because DeJean was speeding when the cars collided after Fistell had begun to turn into the intersection.