A 59-year-old man is being charged with manslaughter and reckless driving nine months after prosecutors say his uncontrolled diabetes led to a crash resulting in the death of a pedestrian, according to an article from KGET 17, a California NBC affiliate.
Leonard Campos says he went into diabetic shock, causing the terrible accident, but police say he could have done more to prevent the crash that killed 64-year old Peggy Mikkelsen, who was pulling weeds in her front yard when she was crushed by a trailer that was thrown from Campos’ work truck. An 18-year old passenger in the truck was also injured in the crash. The authorities say Campos’ gross negligence led to the accident. His blood sugar level was in the low 40s following the accident. A normal range is between 80 and 120.
Campos lost control of his truck, which struck a utility pole before it rolled over several times and caught on fire, reports Tehachapi News. He claims he has no memory of the accident and that he was passed out in diabetic shock.
Police say the case against Campos is very unique and that it took so long to bring the charges because they “wanted to get it right.” They say the passenger in the truck urged him to pull over, but he refused. They also say Campos knew he had diabetes and ignored the warning signs that something might be wrong just before the wreck, according to KGET 17.
Just five minutes before the crash, Campos stopped at a store to buy beer and ice. Campos says he had not drank any of the beer and police have not charged him with an alcohol-related crime. Campos says the police questioned him as to why he didn’t purchase a soda or something else at the store that would have boosted his sugar levels back into the normal range. Campos claims he didn’t realize his sugar was low and wasn’t noticing any of the warning signs. Some people with diabetes, especially those who have lived with the disease for a greater amount of time, can become less sensitive to the warning signs of low blood sugar.
It is not clear from the reports whether Campos has Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, but he did note that he takes his medication regularly, which suggests he has Type 2 diabetes.
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[...] Campos says he went into diabetic shock while driving, causing the terrible accident, but police say he could have done more to prevent the crash that killed 64-year old Peggy Mikkelsen, who was pulling weeds in her front yard when she was crushed by a trailer that was thrown from Campos’ work truck. Campos lost control of his truck, which hit a mound of dirt and became airborne before striking a utility poll, rolling over several times and catching on fire. Campos was also injured in the crash and airlifted to the hospital with head injuries. (See Manslaughter Charge for Man ‘Driving While Diabetic’) [...]