Two Southern California men were arrested Wednesday morning in connection with the boating hit-and-run accident that injured 12-year old Dallen McEntire of Bakersfield on Labor Day Weekend of last year.
An arrest warrant obtained by ABC23 includes interviews with the suspects conducted on the day of the accident and several months later.
Both suspects, Roger Guzman of Lake Elsinore and Thomas Kirby of Los Angeles deny any involvement in the accident.
Despite eyewitness accounts that put Guzman's yellow and white ski boat in the area of the accident at the exact time it happened, and one person who claims to have seen their boat, WITH BOTH MEN IN IT, hit Dallen and leave the area, they still deny involvement.
The report claims the men stopped the boat about 80 yards from the accident site and were checking the engine, but somehow never heard about a dozen people screaming at them for help.
Could there have been another boat?
Possible, but unlikely. Actor Joe Pesci argued in the movie "My Cousin Vinny" that 2 similar looking cars were at the Sac of Suds at almost the same time, and that the one driven by his cousin was innocent.
However, according to eyewitnesses, there were no other ski boats in the vicinity, just a wave runner ridden by Dallen's father that was pulling Dallen's kneeboard and a pontoon boat which carried the one person who viewed the accident.
Through all the denials, a piece of evidence emerged that was irrefutable.
Guzman has a 2004 conviction for DUI. No denial here.
He was also on DUI probation, so if he WAS driving the boat, it's a felony.
During an interview at the marina, where he denied his boat was involved, he told the investigating deputy that he had about six beers before noon.
Game, set, match.
It took a year and numerous interviews to finally arrest Guzman and Kirby.
A painfully difficult time for the McEntire family, that won't get any easier any time soon.
Dallen's head injuries were so severe, Doctor's don't think they will know the full extent of the damage until he's in his 20's.
No denying that.
If Guzman had simply stopped the boat after the collision, he could have transported Dallen to the shore and gotten medical aid to him within 10 minutes. According to the arrest warrant, his father, Capt. Jeff McEntire with the Bakersfield City Fire Department, was busy keeping his son alive in the water, until the pontoon boat arrived to transport them to shore. It took almost 40 minutes.
There is no sympathy, no mistaken identity and absolutely no honor in the men's actions, especially if they have kids of their own.
I liken their behavior to that of a gang banger, who fires a gun into a crowd of people, then RUNS.
It's unclear what punishment the men will face, I only hope that justice will NOT be denied.
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7 comments:
Hi Mike~
I just want to thank you for all of your support during the last year! Your words here are so encouraging. Yes our family, especially Dallen, continues to endure difficulties due to this horrible incident. We just keep reminding ourselves and each other that we are very fortunate to have Dallen alive today!
~Lynn McEntire, Dallen's Mom
Man this sounds weird to me there's a lot of accidents that happen in lake and i have not heard of one like this one is it because the dads a Captain of the fire department??? or is it because they had no one else to blame but a Hispanic man since he was an easy target??? hhhhmmmmmm fishy.........
Anonymous,
I don't know what lakes you go to, but I grew up water skiing behind my Dad's boat in Arizona, and NEVER heard of an accident, where a boat ran over an 11-yr old, causing severe head and face injuries, and the boaters didn't stop to help. Never EVER.
The fact his father was a Capt. in the fire department gave him the life saving knowledge to save his son's life.
It didn't matter who was driving the boat that caused the accident.
They ran from the scene. More than a dozen witnesses saw them leave the cove right before Dallen was hit. In true cowardly fasion, they sped away. Like some punk gang members who shoot a gun and run from the scene. No one else to blame but an hispanic man?
Time for a reality check.
It doesn't matter if he was hispanic, black, white, asian or any other ethnicity. Witnesses saw him do it, then runaway.
That's not fishy, that's pathetic.
I hope & pray for Dallen that he rises from this sad situation and appreciate this God-given gift of life. My worries, since I first heard of this situation, was the risk factor involved in this accident. I've been boating for the past 25 years and seen many accidents, both negligent and accidental. Personally, I would never place my son in such risk, being pulled alone behind a personal watercraft with NO SPOTTER or FLAGGER, especially on a crowded holiday weekend. If there exist factual evidence proving these individuals were guilty, than both the courts and life will take care of them. However, one must keep this in mind:
Contributory Negligence
Anonymous, you sound like the attorney for the defense.
But on a busy holiday weekend, you (as a boater) have to exercise even more caution than normal.
That includes the people who ran Dallen over and left the scene.
Personally, I would never be drinking all day before hopping into my boat to go racing across the water.
The driver was currently on probation for DUI.
Witnesses at the scene saw them slow down and look at their boat after running him over, before proceeding away.
The defense argued that there were other yellow/white boats on the lake that day, but how many were camping in the SAME cove where the suspects boat was seen leaving before Dallen was hit.
You actually want to toss a little blame for the accident at Dallen and his dad?!
Perhaps next time someone is hit and killed by a drunk driver on the road in the early morning hours, we should blame the victim for being out at that time of night.
The next time a woman is raped, we should blame her for wearing provacative clothing.
The case ended in a mistrial and they're starting the process for round two.
Hopefully, this time the jury will get it right.
FROM BRENDAN KINSER
im this kids best friend and i think that if this boy is scarred for life the two men should get a very long prison sentance
Just wanted to let you know that the crimnal retrial for the 2 men who hit Dallen finally began yesterday in Fresno. Hopefully this time, they will both be convicted and have to answer for the lifelong pain that they have brought to my son!
~Lynn McEntire
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