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Edward Andersen
Edward Andersen was ordered to stand trial Tuesday for gross vehicular manslaughter in the traffic death of Nevada City artist Claus Sievert.
Andersen drank the equivalent of 12 shots of whiskey before getting behind the wheel on March 12, according to Tuesday's testimony from an expert on blood-alcohol testing, leading to the head-on crash March 12 and the severe injury of Andersen's 12-year-old son.
At the preliminary hearing, Nevada County Superior Court Judge Candace Heidelberger also ordered Andersen, 38, of Grass Valley, to be tried for drunken driving causing bodily injury and child endangerment.
The defendant was ordered to appear for arraignment on July 6; he remains free on $25,000 bail with the conditions that he attend sobriety meetings and does not drink or drive.
The collision occurred when Andersen swerved onto the right shoulder, overcorrected and then shot into the oncoming lane of Highway 49 at Brewer Road in southern Nevada County.
The judge said her decision was influenced by a test showing Andersen had a 0.18 blood-alcohol content after the crash, more than twice the .08 legal limit.
“We're dealing with a person who knowingly got behind the wheel with the equivalent of 12 shots of whiskey, and he did that with his own 12-year-old son in the car,” Deputy District Attorney Kathryn Francis said.
Witnesses testified Andersen had said at the scene he had had a few beers and later said he had consumed a half-pint of whiskey before the crash.
Blood-level expert Kevin Bush of Sacramento testified Andersen had consumed much more than that. Bush based his information on how many drinks it would take a 200-pound man such as Andersen to reach a blood-alcohol level of 0.18.
To be at that level one hour after the crash, a person of Andersen's size would have to drink 10 to 11 beers, or 12 shots of whiskey, Bush said.
“The .18 is a very high level,” Bush said. “Most people don't drink to that level. At .2, most people start falling asleep for no reason.”
Public Defender Daniel Geffner argued some people can handle more alcohol than others, and that eyewitnesses said his client was not driving erratically prior to the wreck.
The defending lawyer said his client did not willingly steer his vehicle into traffic, proving his negligence did not reach the “gross” level in the charge.
“It appears (Andersen) was trying to move back” into his lane at the time of the crash, further deflating the gross negligence allegation, Geffner said.
Sievert had no chance to avoid the collision, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Dina Hernandez.
The CHP officer said she was the first on the scene and found Sievert dead in the front seat of his Toyota van. She said two eyewitnesses following the vehicles told her they saw Andersen's pickup swerve to the right, overcorrect and shoot across into the oncoming lane, smashing head-on into Sievert's van.
“The van had no opportunity to elude the pickup,” Hernandez said of the first witness's report to her at the scene. As for the second witness, “It was also his opinion the driver of the van had no time to react.”
To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail dmoller@theunion.com or call 477-4237.
Andersen drank the equivalent of 12 shots of whiskey before getting behind the wheel on March 12, according to Tuesday's testimony from an expert on blood-alcohol testing, leading to the head-on crash March 12 and the severe injury of Andersen's 12-year-old son.
At the preliminary hearing, Nevada County Superior Court Judge Candace Heidelberger also ordered Andersen, 38, of Grass Valley, to be tried for drunken driving causing bodily injury and child endangerment.
The defendant was ordered to appear for arraignment on July 6; he remains free on $25,000 bail with the conditions that he attend sobriety meetings and does not drink or drive.
The collision occurred when Andersen swerved onto the right shoulder, overcorrected and then shot into the oncoming lane of Highway 49 at Brewer Road in southern Nevada County.
The judge said her decision was influenced by a test showing Andersen had a 0.18 blood-alcohol content after the crash, more than twice the .08 legal limit.
“We're dealing with a person who knowingly got behind the wheel with the equivalent of 12 shots of whiskey, and he did that with his own 12-year-old son in the car,” Deputy District Attorney Kathryn Francis said.
Witnesses testified Andersen had said at the scene he had had a few beers and later said he had consumed a half-pint of whiskey before the crash.
Blood-level expert Kevin Bush of Sacramento testified Andersen had consumed much more than that. Bush based his information on how many drinks it would take a 200-pound man such as Andersen to reach a blood-alcohol level of 0.18.
To be at that level one hour after the crash, a person of Andersen's size would have to drink 10 to 11 beers, or 12 shots of whiskey, Bush said.
“The .18 is a very high level,” Bush said. “Most people don't drink to that level. At .2, most people start falling asleep for no reason.”
Public Defender Daniel Geffner argued some people can handle more alcohol than others, and that eyewitnesses said his client was not driving erratically prior to the wreck.
The defending lawyer said his client did not willingly steer his vehicle into traffic, proving his negligence did not reach the “gross” level in the charge.
“It appears (Andersen) was trying to move back” into his lane at the time of the crash, further deflating the gross negligence allegation, Geffner said.
Sievert had no chance to avoid the collision, according to California Highway Patrol Officer Dina Hernandez.
The CHP officer said she was the first on the scene and found Sievert dead in the front seat of his Toyota van. She said two eyewitnesses following the vehicles told her they saw Andersen's pickup swerve to the right, overcorrect and shoot across into the oncoming lane, smashing head-on into Sievert's van.
“The van had no opportunity to elude the pickup,” Hernandez said of the first witness's report to her at the scene. As for the second witness, “It was also his opinion the driver of the van had no time to react.”
To contact Senior Staff Writer Dave Moller, e-mail dmoller@theunion.com or call 477-4237.
