4 killed in Lakeville Highway crash

UPDATE: Sunday, Nov. 29,10:37 am

A family of four killed in a Lakeville Highway crash Saturday night was identified Sunday morning as the Maloney family of Sonoma.

Johnathan Maloney, 45, his wife Susan Maloney, 42, and their young children, Grace and Aiden, all died in the impact when a young driver speeding on the highway smashed into their mini-van, said the CHP.

The 19-year-old driver of the Mini Cooper that caused the crash was Steven Culbertson of Lakeport. The CHP had been notified Sunday morning that Culbertson was considered brain dead and on life support. He was being treated at Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital.

The crash was at the intersection of Highway 37 and Lakeville Highway at 9:20 p.m.

Four cars and 10 people were involved, according to the CHP.

CHP crash investigators were on the scene all night and had the highway closed from about 10:30 p.m. until 7:30 a.m., said Sgt. Kevin Mensior.

“We were diagraming the entire thing,” said Mensior, who helped with the crash investigation.

Witnesses estimated Culbertson was driving between 70-90 mph when he clipped the rear end of one car then ran a red light and hit the Maloney’s Nissan Quest.

Culbertson was speeding south on Lakeville Highway when he hit the back of a southbound 2004 Honda CRV, driven by Thomas Graham, 61, of Petaluma.

Culbertson then continued south through a red light at the intersection and hit the Maloney’s mini van, which was headed east on Highway 37.

The mini van was pushed into a 2002 Mitsubishi Galant, which also was eastbound on Highway 37. The Galant was driven by Carrie Rodriguez, 52, of Novato.

Driver Graham and passenger James Parker of Stockton weren’t injured. Rodriguez and passengers Liberty Rosario, 47, of Fairfield and Adelaida Nicholas, 53, of Novato were taken by ambulance to area hospitals, treated for minor injuries and released, the CHP said.

Culbertson was taken by Reach medical helicopter to the Santa Rosa hospital, considered to be in grave condition.

“There was no evidence of alcohol or drugs,” said CHP Sgt. Trent Cross. But a blood sample was taken from Culbertson and will be analyzed, he said.

Heavy holiday weekend traffic was diverted at multiple places to get around the crash and closed highway.

Speed was being considered as a factor in the crash and alcohol use hadn’t been ruled out, according to a CHP press release.

Firefighters from Lakeville, Wilmar, Novato and Petaluma were called to the crash.

You can reach Staff Writer Randi Rossmann at 521-5412 or randi.rossmann@pressdemocrat.com.

A family of four from Sonoma died in a gruesome traffic collision at Highway 37 and Lakeville Highway on Saturday night.

The mother, father and two children - a boy and a girl between 6 and 10 years old - were killed, according to the CHP. Their names were not available early Sunday.

A white Mini Cooper driven by a 20-year-old Lakeport man was reportedly speeding in excess of 90 mph southbound on Lakeville Highway at 9:20 p.m. when he clipped the right side of a Honda CRV stopped at a red light at the intersection where Lakeville meets Highway 37. The driver was not identified early Sunday.

The Mini Cooper reportedly drove through the red light and into Highway 37, striking the family of four riding in a Nissan Quest minivan.

The minivan was rendered nearly unrecognizable by the collision.

The Mini Cooper also struck a Mitsubishi sedan. Three people in that vehicle, from Novato and Fairfield, were injured and transported to a hospital in Novato, according to the CHP.

The occupants of the CRV, from Petaluma, were uninjured. Their identities were not released.

On Saturday night, a yellow tarp covered the mangled wreckage of the minivan as authorities conducted their investigation.

Investigators will conduct skid mark analysis to determine the speed and position of the cars as they approached the point of impact, said CHP Sgt. Trent Cross.

“Right now there is no evidence of drugs or alcohol. That could change later, but right now, there is no evidence,” he said. “He basically went through a solid red light.”

“He clipped two vehicles and broadsided the family of four,” Cross said. “We don't know why he blew the red light.”

Two medical helicopters and the Sonoma County coroner were called to the scene. The driver of the Mini Cooper was given a tube to assist his breathing and was reportedly in critical condition and taken by helicopter to Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, according to CHP. He was the sole occupant of the car.

Traffic in the area came to a standstill and was backed up for hours. Authorities diverted traffic from eastbound Highway 37 at Highway 101; westbound 37 was stopped at Highway 121 and Lakeville Highway traffic was diverted at Stage Gulch Road.

The Saturday night crash had the highest death toll since the 2007 crash on Highway 101 in Santa Rosa that killed five members of a Windsor family.

That case is set to go to trial Monday, with Ryan Karr, 28, of Windsor, the driver of the vehicle that hit the family's car, facing charges of felony vehicular manslaughter.