Bee reporters answer questions about area crime news, trends and other issues.
QUESTION: There was a car accident involving several Rio Americano students back in 1986 or '87. I would like to know the details. I remember there were multiple injuries/fatalities involved. Was anyone ever arrested, charged?
Submitted by: Confidential, Fair Oaks
ANSWER: Five Rio Americano High School students died in traffic accidents in 1986 and '87.
In July 1986, senior Keith Smith, 17, and Jim Bajadali, 16, were killed when their compact car was struck broadside by a Porsche that was racing a motorcycle at speeds up to 100 mph on Garfield Avenue.
According to stories in The Bee, the driver of the Porsche, Robert E. Dooley Jr., was convicted of vehicular manslaughter and sentenced to seven years in prison. The motorcyclist, Brian Joseph Moore, pleaded no contest to the same charge and was sentenced to 10 months in jail and six years of probation.
In February 1987, juniors Kevin Brown and Troy Gray lost control of their car in a pouring rain on Fair Oaks Boulevard and slammed into a tree. Brown was killed in the crash and Gray died after six days in a coma.
In June 1987, 18-year-old senior Paolo Frazier was killed only days before graduation when the Land Rover he was driving on Interstate 805 near San Diego was hit by a truck while his vehicle was stopped on the shoulder. Emily Wilson, 17, a senior at C.K. McClatchy High School, also died in the crash.
The truck driver, Issac Niebla-Astorga, of Ensenada, Mexico, was convicted of two counts of vehicular manslaughter and sentenced to four years in prison.
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