A Superior Court jury yesterday acquitted a 16-year-old boy on a charge of vehicular homicide in connection with a car mishap that killed a Chinese woman.<\/p>\n
The six-man jury handed down the verdict after a three-day trial where defendant Ken Salazar Tanzawa was not called to testify.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m so glad for this young man that he\u2019s now free,\u201d said Tanzawa\u2019s lawyer, Joseph Arriola, standing beside the defendant after the court proceeding ended yesterday afternoon.<\/p>\n
Arriola said he chose not to present the defendant or any witness to testify as his defense strategy.<\/p>\n
Assistant attorney general Joseph Taijeron Jr. said he believed that the prosecution presented sufficient evidence, but added the he respects the jury\u2019s decision.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe thank the Department of Public Safety for all their efforts. We were confident that we presented the evidence, but we respect the jury\u2019s decision,\u201d Taijeron said.<\/p>\n
He added, though, that the case demonstrates the need for accident reconstruction experts to boost prosecution in traffic cases.<\/p>\n
After hearing the jury\u2019s verdict, the prosecution asked the court to dismiss charges of speeding and failure to exercise due care against Tanzawa. It had earlier withdrawn a charge of reckless driving against Tanzawa.<\/p>\n
The case against Tanzawa stemmed from a vehicular accident that happened on Beach Road last Sept. 18, when the vehicle driven by the teenager struck a female pedestrian who was walking off the road with her husband.<\/p>\n
Taijeron said the vehicle suddenly swerved and hit Sun Jun Liu, causing her fatal injuries.<\/p>\n
The victim\u2019s husband testified during the trial, according to Taijeron, but this failed to persuade the jurors to convict Tanzawa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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