Suspect In CHP Officer, Motorist Deaths Posts Bail; Arraignment Postponed
FAIRFIELD (CBS SF) -- The arraignment of a Rocklin man charged with the gross vehicular manslaughter of a California Highway Patrol motorcycle officer and a Vallejo man last week was postponed in Solano County Superior Court until Sept. 12 after he posted $90,000 bail Thursday morning, according to the Solano County District Attorney's Office.
Sean Matthew Walker, 36, was speeding on the shoulder of westbound Interstate Highway 80 while accessing his cellphone when his Chevrolet pickup truck struck CHP Officer Kirk Anthony Griess, 46, and Jaime Bueza Manuel, 49, of Vallejo, around 9 a.m. Friday, prosecutors said.
Griess, a 19-year CHP veteran, had pulled Manuel's Saturn SUV over on Highway 80 near Manuel Campos Parkway.
"There is no way to determine the reason for the stop. Investigators are trying to determine where [Griess] was at the time," CHP Officer Erica Tatum said Thursday afternoon.
Walker was speeding at the time of the collision and was completely on the shoulder, Tatum said.
The district attorney's office and the CHP said Walker was distracted at the time of the crash.
"This was gross negligence," District Attorney Krishna Abrams said Wednesday.
Walker was hospitalized after the crash but was released last Friday.
Memorial Services for Griess are set for 11 a.m. Friday at The Father's House Church, located at 4800 Horse Creek Drive in Vacaville.
Internment is private and members of the public are invited to line the funeral procession routes to honor Griess and his family.
