Man Pleads Guilty in Crash That Killed Teen
A Van Nuys man pleaded guilty this week to manslaughter and drunk driving in a crash that killed the son of his childhood friend.
Carl Otto Hallbauer, 43, of Van Nuys was driving with James Ryan Delaney, 17, in January when he lost control of the teenager’s Chevrolet Camaro and hit a tree on Westlake Boulevard in Thousand Oaks.
Hallbauer, an old friend of Delaney’s father, had been visiting the boy’s parents before the accident.
Delaney, a high school senior, died two days later.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Audry Nafziger, who prosecuted the case, said that Hallbauer tested positive for cocaine after the accident and that his blood-alcohol level “was well over the normal limit” for intoxication.
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