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Paralyzed man could go to prison for causing fatal wreck
| Tuesday, May 6 2008 6:00 PM
Last Updated: Wednesday, May 7 2008 7:48 AM
VENTURA — Danny Espinoza feels nothing below his chest.
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The price of taking care of Espinoza in prison is unclear.
The average yearly cost to house each inmate in California prisons in 2007 was $35,587, according to the CDCR. Thornton said they do not break down the costs for inmates who are paralyzed or are quadriplegics.
Laurie Kolkman said it costs about $50,000 each year to pay for the drugs, caregivers and supplies for Espinoza. That figure may be lower because family members help cut costs by watching over him.
Photos:
Danny's mother, Lauri Kolkman, massages her son's head and neck, which she says had been giving him a lot of pain lately. Danny is a quadriplegic and faces jail time for killing a Bakersfield woman in a car accident.
Dorothy Anne Walter
Danny's stepdad, Bill, wheels him in after a visit to the doctor to check up on the MRSA virus Danny has been battling off and on for a few months.
Danny's brother Kyle, after getting home from school, comes in to visit and watch TV while Manny does some physical therapy with Danny.
Manny, Danny's caretaker, does some cleaning when not helping to feed Danny his meals or do physical therapy.
Daniel Espinoza, after suffering spinal cord injuries from a car accident in Bakersfield is now a quadriplegic, he must be fed meals by his caretaker Manny, and is confined to his bed at his parents home in Ventura County.
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The 25-year-old former Bakersfield resident has been a quadriplegic for the past two years, after he caused an accident that shattered his spine. His days are spent being fed by family members and monitored constantly by caregivers.
Soon, his days could be spent in jail.
Espinoza is set to be sentenced on vehicular manslaughter charges Wednesday in connection with the same wreck that killed a Bakersfield grandmother and left him paralyzed.
THE CRASH
On March 5, 2006, family and friends celebrated an early birthday for Espinoza at his parents’ Ventura home.
He left for his home in Bakersfield about 8 p.m. The computer engineer had work the next day.
“I'm not going to call and be the overly protective mom,” said Espinoza’s mother, Laurie Kolkman. “I went to bed and I didn't find out what happened until the next day.”
Precisely what happened that night is not clear in police reports and court documents.
Espinoza was driving his 2006 Ford Mustang and stopped at a red light on Stockdale Highway at Calloway Drive, according to police reports. A red Corvette and a gray Porsche were also waiting at the light.
When the light flashed green, Espinoza and the Porsche sped away, according to court documents. The Porsche hit 80 mph while Espinoza’s went over 90 mph, according to court records.
Just up the road, coming the opposite direction, was Dorothy Anne Walter. The 69-year old was heading home with her two dogs after watching “Walk the Line” with family, court documents said.
As both cars reached Buena Vista Road, Espinoza lost control of his car and hit a tree on the center divider, according to court documents. His car then careened into the eastbound lane and slammed into Walter’s car.
Emergency workers had to use the Jaws of Life to extract Walter from her car. She died about an hour after the crash at a local hospital.
Espinoza was partially ejected from his car, with a seat belt wrapped around his neck, according to court documents. His heart stopped and he spent a month in a coma.
Law enforcement has gone back and forth on whether the accident was the result of street racing. Both the prosecutor and Walter's family have claimed as much in court records.
Walter’s family would not comment for this story on the advice of an attorney. The family has filed a civil lawsuit against Espinoza.
Espinoza says he cannot remember the accident — or the three or four months before the accident.
“It was an accident for both sides,” Espinoza said. “There is no one who came out on top.”
PRISON SENTENCE
Espinoza pleaded no contest to felony vehicular manslaughter earlier this year.
The judge could give him probation, allowing him to remain at his family’s home, or sentence him to two to six years in prison, according to prosecutor Michael Yraceburn.
The prosecution is asking for a four-year sentence, according to court documents.
“There cannot be a more vulnerable victim than one that never sees the danger nor has any knowledge that they are in danger,” Yraceburn wrote in a court document. “Dorothy Walter did nothing to contribute to her death.”
If Espinoza is sentenced to prison, he will be evaluated at a prison reception area, where his criminal record is looked at as well as his medical and mental needs, said Terry Thornton, spokeswoman for the state prison system. A counselor will then recommend to headquarters which prison to send him to.
That would likely be one of three prisons: the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, the Corcoran State Prison or the California Institution for Men in Chino, according to Dr. Nadim Khoury with the CDRC. Right now there are about 100 inmates in California prisons who are paralyzed.
The care provided to these inmates depends on their medical conditions, he said. Those who have serious ailments and cannot be treated in the prison, will be treated at outside hospitals.
“The severely handicapped, some in wheelchairs and paralyzed have gone to prison,” Thornton said. “Prisons have to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.”
VICTIM'S FAMILY
Dorothy Anne Walter was a retired bookkeeper who loved researching on genealogy. She enjoyed connecting people with their families.
“My mother was one of the most loving and giving individuals I have ever known,” Walter’s daughter, Nancy Walter-Frazier, wrote in a court document. “I am not saying this because she was my mother; she was my mother, my best friend and my greatest ally.”
Walter, also known as “Bootsie,” enjoyed playing the piano and singing happy birthday as her dogs howled nearby.
Since Walter’s death, her sister had a heart attack after hearing about the crash and her grandson dropped out of college because he was so distraught, according to court documents.
“Every day that I drive to BC (Bakersfield College) or just around town I have to pass by where she was killed,” Walter’s grandson, Barrett Rankins, wrote in a court document. “Every time that I pass the bridge I cannot help but to think about the night she died.”
Walter’s family is seeking a full six-year sentence. In court documents they say Espinoza has never contacted them to apologize or even expressed remorse.
“The loss and devastation that my family and I are forced to live with doesn’t get any better,” Laurie Rankins wrote in a court document. “Daniel Espinoza has taken not only her voice from her, but her life forever.”
WAITING FOR JUDGMENT
At his parent’s home in Ventura, Espinoza lies flat on his bed in a bedroom specially constructed for him. In the kitchen, there are several dozen medicine bottles spread out on the counter.
Espinoza spends his days logging on his computer and chatting with other quadriplegics on the Internet. A suck or a blow on a special straw allows him to left and right click a mouse.
He plays World of Warcraft with his 9-year-old brother, Tyler Kolkman and watches movies he ordered on Netflix.
And he battles with his body.
“I don’t think anyone understands what Danny is going through,” his mom, Laurie Kolkman said. “Going to prison would be a death sentence.”
After the crash, Espinoza spent a month in a coma. At one point his family considered removing him from life support.
Now they check his oxygen levels, blood pressure and temperature. They massage his neck, where he says it’s always sore. He has two caregivers who look after him.
Headaches threaten him daily. They are signs of autonomic dysreflexia — a syndrome caused by his spinal chord injury that can lead to seizures, stroke and death.
“It only takes an instant to dysreflex and to have a stroke,” his mom said. “He’s a prisoner of his own body.”
He still battles with bouts of pneumonia and can stay awake for days when he comes down with painful urinary tract infections.
“He’s serving a worse sentence now than going to prison,” said his stepfather, Bill Kolkman.