Gilroy
– The Carmel driver who struck Gilroy city planner Cydney Casper
and ejecting her off her motorcycle, killing the 51-year-old woman,
will appear in Monterey County court on charges of vehicular
manslaughter Friday.
Gilroy – The Carmel driver who struck Gilroy city planner Cydney Casper and ejecting her off her motorcycle, killing the 51-year-old woman, will appear in Monterey County court on charges of vehicular manslaughter Friday.
Diane Erbe Dawson, then 77, didn’t notice Casper on her new Harley Davidson as she pulled ahead of Casper from a cross-street in Salinas, the afternoon of Dec. 2, according to the California Highway Patrol.
Dawson’s Toyota Camry struck Casper, throwing her from the bike and causing major head and internal injuries.
Her boyfriend was riding his own motorcycle ahead of her. Casper died en route to Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital.
Casper had worked in Gilroy’s Planning Department since 1999, overseeing important projects such as the city’s farmland preservation policy, the legal battle between Gilroy schools and Glen Loma developers over a school site’s land value, and the Glen Loma Specific Plan, which will guide the development of nearly 1,700 homes in south Gilroy.
At the time of her death, she was polishing off a noise ordinance to quiet Gilroy neighborhoods. Friends and coworkers recalled her quiet demeanor and professionalism; the loss shook the city’s planning department, which learned of her death the following Monday.
Casper, who rode motorcycles during college, had bought the motorcycle only a month before her death, said Bill Faus, City Planning Manager.
Her boyfriend had bought his own motorcycle earlier in 2006, and Casper was excited to follow suit, showing the bike to coworkers just before Thanksgiving.
Dawson pleaded not guilty to the charge, vehicular manslaughter without gross negligence, on Feb. 8 of this year, said Sherri Hall, administrative assistant to the Monterey County District Attorney.
The charge carries a maximum sentence of one year in county jail and/or a $1,000 fine. She is scheduled to appear for a pre-trial hearing Friday at 230 Church St. in Salinas, defended by attorney Joe Cisneros.
