Vehicular manslaughter case set to begin

The Glenn County Superior Court trial begins Monday for a Stonyford man charged in the 2007 drunken driving collision that killed another Stonyford resident.

Levi Davis Gleason, 23, pleaded not guilty in March 2009 to charges of vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, driving under the influence of alcohol causing injury and driving with a .08 or higher blood alcohol level causing injury.

The charges stem from a single-vehicle collision Nov. 19, 2007 on County Road 306, north of Elk Creek.

David Alexander, 27, was ejected form the Ford F-250 pickup truck and died Nov. 30, 2007.

The California Highway Patrol said the driver made an "unsafe" turning movement that caused the truck to leave the west side of the roadway, hitting a gravel patch, the driver then "overcorrected" causing the truck to fishtail and roll several times, court records state.

Gleason, along with two other passengers, initially told CHP investigators that Alexander was driving at the time of the wreck. Alexander was placed under arrest while receiving treatment at Enloe Medical Center, court records state

However, Gleason's then-girlfriend, Gretchen Sill of Roseville, and Derek Holmes of Elk Creek, changed their statements nearly two weeks later and named Gleason as the driver.

The CHP then sought charges against Gleason, but the case was rejected by Glenn County District Attorney Robert S. Holzapfel, who claimed there was insufficient evidence to prosecute.

Alexander's family brought the case to the state Attorney General's Office in Sacramento and criminal charges were filed the following month.

CHP Officer Amy Cregger testified during an April 2009 preliminary hearing that Gleason admitted consuming eight or nine beers and four whisky cocktails during the hours leading up to the crash, and that empty beer cans were found inside the truck.

Court records state that Gleason showed a .171 percent blood-alcohol level on the night of the crash.

Holmes later reportedly told investigators that Gleason "became scared" and said "I was not driving, okay? Dave (Alexander) was driving," court records state.

"Holmes said he knew it was wrong to lie, but he waited to tell the truth because he wanted ... Gleason to turn himself in," court records state.

Judge Donald C. Byrd will preside over the four-day trial.

Jury selection is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. in the Willows branch of the court.

Contact Rob Parsons at 934-6800 or rparsons@tcnpress.com.