San Bernardino Woman Hurt in ’96 Street Race Dies

A San Bernardino woman who was left in a vegetative state for nearly a decade after being struck by a car involved in a street race has died, and prosecutors said Friday that they may charge the driver with manslaughter.

Florence Thompson, 61, died late Thursday at Community Hospital of San Bernardino, said Vic Stull, supervising deputy district attorney for San Bernardino County.

Thompson’s husband, Michael, 65, had her removed from life support March 29. She had not regained consciousness since her head was crushed in the April 16, 1996, accident.

Officials say Thompson was three miles from home when a Corvette driven by Monty Gill spun out of control while racing another car on a city street at 80 mph. The car crossed the center line and hit Thompson’s car.

“Her face was beyond recognition. It broke every bone in her face,” her husband said. “It took three operations to put her face back together.”

Gill, now 42, pleaded no contest to engaging in a speed contest -- a misdemeanor. He paid a $110 fine, spent 15 days in jail and served 150 hours of community service.

Gill could not be located for comment Friday.

He could have faced a charge of reckless driving but the prosecutor dropped the charge and accepted a plea bargain.

Former Dist. Atty. Dennis Stout has apologized for what he called “a huge mistake,” and so did Stull.

Prosecutors eventually won a court decision ordering Gill to pay $2.2 million in restitution, but he declared bankruptcy.

Stull said the district attorney’s office will consider charging Gill with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter with negligence, which carries a one-year county jail sentence, or felony vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence, which could land him in state prison for up to six years.

Prosecutors must first find evidence that Gill was driving recklessly, and an autopsy must conclude that Thompson died from injuries from the accident.

Thompson’s husband has said he would welcome the reopening of the case. “This guy never apologized. He never took responsibility for it,” he said.

“When people do something like this, they need to be held accountable. I think Flo would want that.”