5 Hurt as SUV Slams O.C. Store

A 69-year-old man trying to pull into a handicapped parking space instead plowed his Ford Explorer through the front doors of a Stater Bros. supermarket in Orange on Tuesday, injuring five people, including a woman who was hospitalized after being pinned under the vehicle.

Authorities said they were focusing on whether the driver, Elmer Anderson of Orange, mistakenly hit the accelerator when he meant to brake.

“He told us that he was parking,” said Orange Police Sgt. Dave Hill. “He didn’t know how it happened, but he ended up running into the front of the store.”

The 10:12 a.m. accident left a chaotic scene at the East Collins Avenue grocery: crushed checkout stands, strewn grocery bags and produce, frantic customers and employees.

“There was glass everywhere,” Hill said.

It also was reminiscent of last year’s tragedy at the Santa Monica Farmers’ Market in which an 86-year-old driver mowed down a crowd, killing 10 people. That case renewed debate over regulation of elderly drivers, who experts say are more likely to be involved in accidents caused by unintended acceleration.

As authorities responded to Tuesday’s accident in Orange, George Russell Weller, now 87, was pleading not guilty in Los Angeles County Superior Court to 10 felony counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence in the farmers market crash.

Police questioned Anderson after the Orange accident and released him, pending further investigation.

“We’re putting all the evidence, statement and examination together to determine whether there was any criminal liability in his part,” Hill said.

He added that drugs or alcohol did not appear to be a factor.

Anderson’s daughter, Shellee Tipple, said her father was “too distraught” to talk and was being comforted by family members. “It’s a stressful situation for anybody. He’s having a difficult time with it.”

Anderson’s neighbors described him as a friendly, “grandpa type” who was quick with a smile or a wave and who shared his home-grown sweet peas and flowers with them.

“He’s a very, very, very kindful person,” said Ruth Sherwood, 88, who lives across the street. “He wouldn’t do anything intentional to hurt anyone.”

A retired engineer who worked in the aerospace industry, Anderson takes care of plants and flowers as a volunteer worker at the Centennial Farm on the Orange County Fairgrounds, where his wife, Audrey, works.

One traffic accident appears in Anderson’s record at the state Department of Motor Vehicles. It occurred in March 2003, and no further details on it were provided.

Guadalupe Espinosa, 34, was with a friend in the frozen-food section of Stater Bros. when they heard what they thought was a bomb.

“It was a very, very loud noise. I’d never heard anything like it,” said Espinosa. “We got very, very nervous. Our legs were shaking.”

After the crash, store workers removed debris from the two crushed checkout stands and began to clean the white floor, which bore 10-foot-long skid marks. The store stayed open for business.

Workers said managers told them not to talk publicly about what had happened.

One worker, however, said the incident, “was very, very intense. It was hard to look and see the woman trapped. It’s something I’m going to think about for a very long time.”

That woman -- Magdalena Sida, 32, of Santa Ana -- was walking to an ATM at the front of the store when the SUV jumped the concrete wheel stop in the parking space and smashed through the doors.

Police said Sida suffered injuries to the head and torso and was taken to Western Medical Center-Santa Ana.

The others were treated at the scene.

Several city firefighters were in the market at the time of the accident and helped free Sida from the damaged SUV. Several pickets from a nearby Albertsons market also ran over to help.

“We regret that one customer was injured,” said Jack Brown, president of Stater Bros., who added that the glass in the store’s front doors would be replaced by today. “We were fortunate that more customers were not hurt.”

Times staff writers Stanley Allison, Mike Anton and H.G. Reza contributed to this report.