Driver who was allegedly texting when he hit, killed boy is indicted
Motorist is accused of sending text messages and being under the influence of a prescription drug when he struck the 14-year-old who was riding his bike in Huntington Beach.
A motorist who was allegedly sending text messages on his cellphone and under the influence of prescription medication when he struck and killed a 14-year-old boy on a bicycle in Huntington Beach last year has been indicted by a grand jury on felony charges.
Jeffrey Francis Woods, 21, was allegedly sending text messages on his mobile phone on Aug. 29, 2007, when his pickup truck swerved across several lanes on Indianapolis Avenue and struck the boy, Daniel Oates.
Oates was thrown about 150 feet from his bicycle and killed. Woods' truck crashed through a wall and into the backyard of a nearby home.
Woods was under the influence of Vicodin and Xanax at the time of the crash, prosecutors allege. A grand jury indicted him Nov. 10 on charges of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and driving under the influence.
Woods was scheduled to appear this morning for arraignment at the Orange County Superior Court in Santa Ana.
Pfeifer is a Times staff writer
Stuart.pfeifer@latimes.com
