Police: Woman Coherent Before Crash

A Fullerton woman who allegedly caused a fatal crash after stealing an ambulance Saturday did not seem dangerous to police officers or paramedics who examined her just hours before the incident, a police official said Tuesday.

“She was coherent, she was responsive, and there was no indication that she was a danger to herself, a danger to others or that she was gravely disabled,” said Orange Police Capt. Art Romo.

Family members have blamed authorities for not taking Rose V. Failla, 52, into custody when they had the chance several hours before the accident that killed two young men.

Such judgment calls faced by officers and paramedics every day are difficult to make, criminal experts say: when to detain an apparently unstable person.

“Quite frankly, the police are caught between a rock and a hard place,” said Dr. Bruce Arrigo, a criminologist and a professor at the California School of Professional Psychology in Fresno. “It is not enough for a person to act crazily” to be taken into custody, he said.

State law does not require police officers to detain mentally ill people, but they may if they believe the person is a threat or in danger. A psychiatrist must ultimately evaluate the patient and decide if he or she should be held for evaluation and treatment.

Arrigo said police officers have little training on making such decisions and must rely on their street experience to make assessments about the mentally ill.

“Just because someone acts inappropriately or in a non-customary way does not necessarily raise the need for involuntary hospitalization or incarceration,” he said.

About 2 p.m. Saturday, police and paramedics were called to an Orange home to attend to a woman who appeared to need medical attention, Romo said. After assessing Failla, the two officers and two paramedics determined she did not need to be committed and advised her sister-in-law to take her to her psychiatrist.

Failla, who family members say has a history of mental illness, checked herself in to Anaheim Memorial Medical Center about three hours later. According to authorities, Failla left the emergency room before a doctor could see her and drove off in an ambulance, using keys that were left inside.

Less than a mile from the hospital, Failla allegedly ran a red light and struck another car, killing college students Steven Tran, 20, and Michael Rebaza, 21, both of Anaheim.

Failla has been charged with two counts of manslaughter and one count of auto theft. After a brief court appearance Tuesday, her arraignment was scheduled for Friday and bail was set at $250,000.

Failla’s mental state is likely to be a trial issue, said Martin L. Levine, a USC law professor and a psychoanalyst.

Even if a judge finds her competent to stand trial, her defense attorneys may still pursue an insanity defense. But to win, they will have to show that Failla is mentally ill, was incapable of knowing or understanding her actions and was unable to distinguish right from wrong at the time of the crime.

If she is found not guilty by reason of insanity, she will be remanded to a mental institution, Levine said.