Jun 4, 2007 3:19 pm US/Pacific
Witness Of Tongan Royal Crash Testifies
REDWOOD CITY (BCN) ―
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Tongan Royals, Prince Tu'ipelehake and Princess Kaimana.
A driver who witnessed a July car wreck on U.S. Highway 101 that resulted in the deaths of members of the Tongan royal family testified in San Mateo County Superior Court Monday morning that he saw two cars race past him seconds before coming upon the crash himself.
Edith Delgado, 19, of Redwood City, is accused of driving one of the speeding cars, a white Ford Mustang that witnesses say struck a Ford Explorer north of Willow Road in Menlo Park at about 9 p.m. on July 5.
Tonga's Prince Tu'ipelehake, 54; Princess Kaimana Tu'ipelehake, 45; and their driver, Vinisia Hefa, 36, were in the Explorer that was struck and then rolled several times, finally landing on its roof.
All three were declared dead at the crash site by emergency responders, Menlo Park fire Capt. Jeff Schreiber testified Monday morning.
Witness Brian Camp testified that Delgado's Mustang had been following a black Cadillac Escalade when they sped past him at about 85 to 90 mph, he said. He described both vehicles passing other vehicles ahead of him, coming "within a few feet" of these cars, he said.
"It appeared that they were racing," Camp stated. Both cars went out of his view, he said, but seconds later, he came upon the crash scene and said he noticed a similar black Escalade exiting at the Willow Avenue off-ramp.
Delgado, who pulled aside after the crash, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence for her alleged role in the crash.
Delgado's defense attorney Randy Moore has not disputed that Delgado's car hit the Explorer, but denied that his client was grossly negligent.
The trial is estimated to last about two weeks.
Delgado remains in custody in lieu of $1 million bail. If convicted of all the charges she is facing, she could face a maximum of eight years in prison, according to Chief Deputy District Attorney Steve Wagstaffe.
(© CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Bay City News contributed to this report.)
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