A judge issued a bench warrant for a man accused of killing a family of six in a late-night Gorman crash more than four years ago.
Richard Lopez, 73, of Walnut, is awaiting his third trial on a half-dozen counts related to a fiery crash in the early-morning crash on June 28, 2016.
The crash killed Connie Wu Li, 33; Flora Kuang, 33; Jayden Li, 5; Lucas Li, 3; Sky Ng, 4; and Venus Ng, 2, when they were in a van from Daly City that broke down and was partially blocking the right lane, according to prosecutors.
When the tractor-trailer Lopez was driving crashed into the van, the van erupted in flames and went down an embankment, according to officials around the time of the crash.
The charges against Lopez stem from prosecutors’ claims the commercial truck driver had not rested the legally mandated 10 hours after allegedly driving for more than 15 hours, according to the criminal complaint.
In his second trial, the jury reached a split decision: the jury voted 7-5 in favor of guilt on the manslaughter charges, ultimately resulting in a hung jury; however, Lopez was convicted of the misdemeanor charge, failing to comply with California Highway Patrol regulations as a commercial driver.
On March 12, about a week before the courts halted jury trials due to COVID-19, Lopez was sentenced on that count to: probation; 90 days in jail; 10 days of community labor; and the suspension of his commercial license, according to an email from Ricardo Santiago, spokesman for the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Lopez failed to appear for the Sept. 18 court date regarding a third trial for his remaining charges, which resulted in a bench warrant issued for his arrest, and a new hearing set for Oct. 15.
