Ojai Man, 54, Killed, 2 Injured in Freeway Rush-Hour Crash

An Ojai man on his way to work was killed Monday morning in a two-car accident on the Ventura Freeway that tied up traffic for more than four hours, authorities said.

Authorities identified the victim as J.B. Reeves, an auto dealership supervisor who celebrated his 54th birthday Sunday.

California Highway Patrol officers closed the southbound lanes of the Ventura Freeway near the Santa Paula Freeway interchange following the 6:45 a.m. crash. Rush-hour traffic was diverted off the freeway at Seaward Avenue, and cars were backed up for nine miles, beyond Emma Wood State Beach, authorities said.

The accident scene was cleared by 11 a.m., with two lanes reopened to southbound traffic. A Caltrans crew spent another two hours repairing a guardrail, and by 1 p.m. all three lanes were open.

The crash also brought southbound traffic on California 33 to a crawl as far north as Canada Larga Road, as morning commuters were taken off the freeway at Main Street in Ventura.

CHP spokesman David Cockrill said that Reeves was killed moments after his 1989 Ford pickup truck was sideswiped by a Volkswagen Sirocco, careened off the right shoulder of the freeway and hit a eucalyptus tree.

The driver of the Volkswagen was identified as Joanna Gomez, 38, of Ventura.

Gomez was traveling between 75 and 80 mph in the southbound fast lane of the Ventura Freeway when she lost control of her car and swerved into the center lane, striking Reeves’ truck, Cockrill said. The Volkswagen flipped over and slid about 70 feet on its roof before coming to rest in the fast lane.

Reeves’ pickup spun around, flew over the guardrail and crashed into a tree on the driver’s side, pinning Reeves, who was wearing his seat belt.

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Both Gomez and her 8-month-old son, Lucas, were taken by ambulance to Ventura County Medical Center with minor injuries. Gomez was in stable condition and her son in good condition, said a hospital spokeswoman. Gomez was wearing a seat belt and her son was strapped into a child safety seat.

Nick Parrino, a mover with Hilford Moving & Storage in Ventura, was getting ready for an early morning move when he heard the crash on the freeway above.

“I knew what it was. I told my guys to call 911,” Parrino said.

Parrino scaled the shrub-lined hillside and was the first to reach Reeves, who was alone in the truck. “I asked him if he can hear me. He nodded his head,” Parrino said.

At that point, Parrino said, Reeves stopped moving.

“I wish there was something I could have done, but there wasn’t,” Parrino said.

Paramedics were on the scene within minutes, and Reeves was pronounced dead at 6:56 a.m., authorities said.

An autopsy performed on Reeves indicated the cause of death was multiple blunt-force trauma injuries, according to Mitch Breese, Ventura County senior deputy coroner.

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Cockrill said Gomez’s car will be examined to determine whether mechanical failure contributed to the crash. If not, and CHP investigators determine that driver error was compounded by Gomez’s excessive speed, the district attorney could file vehicular manslaughter charges against her, according to Cockrill.

The results of the tests on Gomez’s car could be known in one week, Cockrill said.

Reeves’ wife, Leslie, who was being consoled by friends Monday afternoon, said that Monday started out like any other day.

“There was no special goodbye,” she said. “J.B. was just on his way to work.”

As a dispatcher, it was Reeves’ responsibility to make sure that cars brought to Vreeland Cadillac’s service department received the proper care.

Reeves, who was born Aug. 24, 1943, in Ottawa, Kan., spent much of his free time on the golf course, according to his wife. “Golfing was his life,” she said.

Reeves was a 20-year member of the Soule Park Men’s Golf Club in Ojai, and just this year returned as the club’s tournament director.

Leslie Reeves said, “We would have been married 27 years in December.” The couple have no children.

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One of those friends offering condolences was Jack Segotta of Ojai, who played golf with Reeves every Saturday and Sunday for about 25 years.

“I’ve known him so long, and played golf with him so long, I feel like I lost a brother,” said Segotta, 68, a retired steel worker. “I saw Jack twice a week and I saw Leslie once a week.”

Segotta recalled Sunday as being just another day of great golf with his buddy. Reeves did not make a big deal about his turning 54, Segotta said. Instead, Reeves played 18 holes with his friends and called it quits about lunch time.

“I wished him happy birthday,” Segotta said. “The last thing he did was buy me a beer before he went home.”

Ventura County Sheriff’s Sgt. Larry Baugher, who became a member of Reeves’ weekend golfing group about five years ago, remembered his former golf companion as a good friend.

“J.B. was just a gracious gentleman,” Baugher said. “He was always there, having a Diet Pepsi, ready to play and have a good time.”

Reeves’ co-workers at Vreeland Cadillac in Oxnard were stunned by news of his death, said Grant Burg, general manager.

“The mood here is somber. Very somber. Every employee here is pretty down in the dumps,” Burg said. “You just couldn’t ask for a nicer guy at work.”

Reeves was “a perfect employee,” Burg said. “He came in early and stayed late.”

When Burg arrived for work Monday and discovered Reeves had not yet come in, he took notice. “I heard that there was an accident, and I figured that he must have been stuck in it,” Burg said.