Felony Charge in Fatal Bake Parkway Crash Warranted, Judge Rules

Enough evidence exists to put a San Clemente driver involved in a fatal Bake Parkway crash on trial for gross vehicular manslaughter, an Orange County Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday.

Prosecutors say that Jose Javier Fernandez Ramirez allegedly  in Lake Forest in January 2011, crashing into a , 23.

Davenport, of Anaheim, died at the scene.

Testimony from a series of witnesses took nearly two days, separated by the holiday break, before the hearing wrapped up, and Judge Joy Wiesenfeld Markman concluded that the prosecution's case against Ramirez has merit.

Ramirez was into the Jan. 14 crash at the intersection of Bake and North Pointe Drive. He escaped without injury, but could face six years behind bars if convicted of gross vehicular manslaughter by running the red light. 

Ramirez has pleaded not guilty to the charges.

In December, law enforcement officials and Scott Graham, an eyewitness to the crash, testified as to the aftermath of the crash.

An emotional Graham said that

On Wednesday, the court heard hours of testimony from Orange County Sheriff's Department Dep. Shane Stewart, the lead investigator on the crash, and Wes Vandiver, the district attorney's investigator.

The men, who worked independently, reached different conclusions in their investigations as to Ramirez' speed leading up to the crash.

Stewart estimated that Ramirez had been traveling about 50 mph, and didn't believe his speed had been a factor in the collision. However, Vandiver—a renowned specialist in accident reconstruction—said that the initial analysis performed by Stewart was incorrect.

Vandiver's subsequent investigation, which he called "more complete" than Stewart's, concluded that Ramirez was going at least 69.2 mph.

After hearing all the testimony, Markman said that she didn't mean to "disparage" Stewart's conclusions, but that Vandiver's credentials in accident reconstruction were beyond reproach.

She also dismissed defense attorney Stephen Rios' suggestion that limited visibility due to trees near the collision scene may have contributed to the crash. Rios said that a statement made by witness Graham to that effect should be considered a factor.

He also emphasized that no alcohol, drugs, cell phone use or other districtions were involved in the "tragic, tragic, tragic" situation that led to Davenport's death.

Ramirez' next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 17 in Santa Ana.