Driver Tells of a Slippery Road Before Teen Crash

Despite new tires on his Mercedes diesel, Tommy Zavala nearly lost control on Irvine Avenue’s sharp curves last May, fishtailing as he tried to navigate pavement that had been soaked by city sprinklers less than an hour before a Blazer packed with 10 teenagers flipped and crashed, killing one of them and injuring several others.

Zavala was among witnesses called to testify Thursday by the lawyer for the teenager charged with causing the Blazer crash by speeding and driving recklessly. Zavala, a Newport Harbor High School student like those involved in the May 23 crash on Irvine, also testified he was friends with the accused teen, Jason Rausch.

A preliminary hearing to determine whether Rausch should stand trial on a felony charge of vehicular manslaughter and two misdemeanor counts of reckless driving continues today in Municipal Court in Newport Beach. Rausch has pleaded not guilty.

Donny Bridgman, the Blazer’s owner and one of its passengers, was killed in the crash following a party at which teens were drinking liquor and beer. Rausch, who abstained from drinking, was the designated driver.

Rausch’s lawyer also introduced more than a dozen police photos taken after the crash showing several areas of wet pavement that a defense expert, San Bernardino Engineer Harry J. Krueper, said contributed to the loss of control leading to the crash.

And earlier, Frank Gustafson, who lives on Irvine Avenue where the wreck occurred, testified he heard the crash, called 911, and then went outside, where he saw a “sheet” of water on the road.

However, prosecutors Thursday presented testimony from a Newport Beach contractor who operates the sprinklers along Irvine Avenue. The contractor, Kirk Johnson, said sprinklers were computer-timed to go off at two-minute intervals and that the area where the crash occurred could not have been watered until 12:28 a.m., about 20 minutes after the crash.

Rausch’s lawyer, Jennifer Keller of Irvine, challenged the testimony, saying records produced by the company, California Landscape Maintenance, did not show what time sprinklers were operated on May 23 and that the computer timer may not have been adjusted for daylight saving time. That could mean the sprinklers began operating at 11:28 p.m. instead of 12:28 a.m., she said.

Johnson also said there had been a repair to malfunctioning pipes on the curve in question less than a month before the crash and said that, in response to complaints of dry grass by Newport Beach parks officials, the system was adjusted for higher water flows on May 13, only 10 days before the accident.