CHP probes whether driver was drinking before fatal crash

The investigation into Saturday night's car crash that killed a Sonoma family broadened Tuesday into whether the teenage driver had been drinking before reportedly running a red light and crashing into the family's van.

CHP investigators Tuesday afternoon interviewed a witness who reported seeing the driver, Steven Culbertson, 19, of Lakeport, in the hours leading up to the collision. Culbertson died Sunday of his injuries.

In interviews Tuesday with The Press Democrat and later with the CHP, Michael Loffredo of Petaluma said his family saw Culbertson sitting at the bar of Traxx, a Petaluma bar and restaurant, as they were having dinner between 7 and 9 p.m. Saturday. He said a white Mini Cooper car was in the parking lot.

Whether alcohol was involved in Saturday night's crash remained unknown Tuesday, pending results in two to three weeks of Culbertson's toxicology test ordered by the CHP.

The CHP confirmed Tuesday that Culbertson had been arrested for drunken driving in a 2007 Lake County crash when he was 17. His driver's license was suspended for a year, the standard punishment after such an arrest.

Culbertson had no other driving infractions, the CHP said.

Loffredo, an art instructor at the Santa Rosa Junior College campus in Petaluma, told The Press Democrat he and his sister remarked on the white Mini with Lakeport markings as they went into the restaurant. He said they saw a tall, dark-haired young man sitting at the bar and he had a mixed-drink style glass in his hand.

"I thought, 'That's a kid . . . He's drinking. It must be a busboy or dishwasher, but they're giving him a drink.' He was noticeably young," Loffredo said.

That account, if proved true, could result in criminal charges or administrative sanctions if the underage Culbertson was served alcohol, CHP Officer Jon Sloat said.

"We need to backtrack 24 hours leading up to the collision," Sloat said. "If he was somewhere drinking underage, that opens up a whole other can of worms for whoever was serving him."

The state Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, which issues licenses and investigates possible violations, has joined the investigation, CHP Sgt. Robert Mota said.

Traxx owner Chris Cheney said Tuesday evening he hadn't been contacted by investigators.

He said he didn't know if Culbertson had been at his bar-restaurant, but his employees use standard age-checking procedures before they serve alcohol to young-looking patrons.

Typically, bars, wineries and restaurants are not responsible for what intoxicated patrons do once they walk out the door.

The exception is when someone serves an obviously intoxicated minor, said Santa Rosa attorney Pat Emery, who has handled numerous civil lawsuits involving alcohol-related crashes.

Loffredo said that after dinner he drove southeast on Lakeville Street toward the Petaluma marina and he realized the Mini was behind him, driving fast.

"As we left, he must have been right behind us," he said. "That car blew by us in the lane and cut off two cars coming off the freeway. That was the beginning of a death ride.

"He was doing at least 70. I told my dad, 'That SOB just went through the red light.' It was suicidal. Nobody in their right mind would do that."

Loffredo said the Mini split between two vehicles exiting Highway 101 at Lakeville, causing those drivers to honk their horns. The Mini continued east, he said.

"I looked at the clock and it was 9:08," he said. "Then they showed his picture on the news and I went, 'Bingo.' "

That time frame matches the crash that occurred about 10 minutes later and about 12 miles away at Lakeville Highway and Highway 37.

The CHP said that as Culbertson approached Highway 37 southbound on Lakeville, he came upon a Honda CRV stopped for a red light. The Mini, speeding at what witnesses estimated was 70 to 90 mph, clipped the back of that car and flew into the intersection against the light at about 9:20 p.m. Saturday.

Sloat said it appears Culbertson didn't try to slow before running the red light. No skid marks were at the scene.

"It didn't look like he was trying to brake," Sloat said.

The Mini slammed broadside into the family's van traveling east at Highway 37, killing Susan Maloney, 42, her husband, John, 45, and their children, Grace, 5, and Aiden, 8, the CHP said.

Whether Culbertson still was in control of his car after clipping the Honda CRV isn't known, but at the high speed he was traveling at he wouldn't have been able to avoid running the red light, Sloat said.

"He was going fast enough, he was going into that intersection in control or out of control," he said.

A family friend said Monday that Culbertson had a passion for racing cars. The friend said Culbertson and his father frequently traveled to racetracks in the state to race a BMW and an Acura.

On his Facebook page, Culbertson listed his occupation as "pro driver/mechanic."

Efforts to reach Culbertson's family since the crash have been unsuccessful. Sloat said officers intend to interview his family but wanted to give them time.

Autopsies on the bodies of the Maloney family were scheduled for Tuesday, according to the Sonoma County Coroner's Office. Culbertson's autopsy was scheduled to follow.

You can reach Staff Writer Lori A. Carter at 762-7297 or lori.carter@pressdemocrat.com.