Drunk Driver in Crash That Killed 4 Is Sued

The family of one of four Orange County youths killed in a drunk-driving accident in the Mojave Desert a year ago has filed a wrongful-death lawsuit against the teenage driver and his parents.

The suit brought by the mother and sister of 17-year-old accident victim Anthony Fuentes Jr. claims that negligence by driver James Virgil Patterson and his parents caused Fuentes’ death.

Patterson was carrying seven friends in his father’s Chevy Suburban a year ago Monday in a stretch of desert north of Victorville when he lost control of the vehicle. The 5,000-pound truck rolled over several times, killing Fuentes; Jonothan Croweagle Fabbro Curtis, 16; John Thornton 18; and Steven Richard Bender, 18. Three other youths were seriously injured.

Patterson was drunk, with a blood-alcohol level of .16%, two times the legal limit for adults. In March, he pleaded guilty to four counts of vehicular manslaughter and two counts of felony drunk driving. He is serving a sentence of 120 days in jail and 120 days of alcohol rehabilitation.

The plaintiffs in the suit filed in Orange County Superior Court, Adelina ad Geovanna Fuentes, allege that David and Elizabeth Patterson were negligent in their supervision of their son and in allowing him to use their car.

Before leaving the desert for an overnight camping trip, the youths bought dozens of beers at an Anaheim liquor store. James Patterson also took a 12-pack of beer from his parents’ refrigerator.

James Patterson was the designated driver for the trip. He had taken a five-hour nap before taking the wheel.

Elizabeth Patterson declined to comment on the lawsuit Monday, saying she had not seen it.