After proving twice that he was not driving irresponsibly the
day of a tragic accident that killed a Salinas man, Robert Orabuena
is going to stand trial for vehicular manslaughter.
Orabuena, 41, of Gilroy was ordered by Superior Court Judge Alan
Hedegard to stand trial on Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. for two misdemeanor
charges and one vehicle code infraction
– misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter, reckless driving and
driving without proof of insurance.
After proving twice that he was not driving irresponsibly the day of a tragic accident that killed a Salinas man, Robert Orabuena is going to stand trial for vehicular manslaughter.
Orabuena, 41, of Gilroy was ordered by Superior Court Judge Alan Hedegard to stand trial on Nov. 3 at 10 a.m. for two misdemeanor charges and one vehicle code infraction – misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter, reckless driving and driving without proof of insurance.
Orabuena’s defense attorney Arthur Cantu said the trial is a desperate attempt by prosecutors to try and salvage some small victory in the case.
“We asked the district attorney’s office to dismiss the charges but they have refused to,” Cantu said. “However, we do have a strong case, and I believe that Mr. Orabuena will be found not guilty on all counts.”
In what could be viewed as a bad sign for the prosecution, Hedegard gave Orabuena back his driver’s license and permission to drive again.
Cantu said any further prosecution of this case would be a waste of time and taxpayer’s money.
“Taking this to trial could cost the taxpayers as much as $30,000,” Cantu said.
Part of the reason for the high price tag on taking this case to trial is because Orabuena was originally a case sent to the public defenders office. Prosecutors had San Benito County Public Defender Greg LaForge removed from the case for possible conflict of interest.
With LaForge removed, the court had to appoint an attorney to represent Orabuena, which means the courts and the county pick up the cost of Cantu, his investigators and the cost of the expert witness hired by Cantu’s office, as well as the costs of the prosecution.
Prosecutors declined to comment on the case citing it is against the district attorney office’s policy to discuss the details of a case that is still being heard in court.
Orabuena was originally charged with second degree murder and felony vehicular manslaughter following his arrest on July 4 for an accident on Fairview Road that ended with the death of David Judnick, 48, of Salinas.
Subsequent investigations and testing proved that Orabuena was not drunk or under the influence of drugs at the time of the accident, so prosecutors were forced to drop the murder charge.
Hedegard, earlier this month, dismissed the felony vehicular manslaughter charge against Orabuena when it was proven in court that he was not grossly negligent in his driving on the night of the accident.
