Man, 20, Pleads Not Guilty In Valley Village Crash That Electrocuted 2 Good Samaritans
VAN NUYS (CBSLA.com) — A 20-year-old Glendale man pleaded not guilty Wednesday to two vehicular manslaughter charges in connection to an August 2012 crash in Valley Village that led to the electrocutions of two women who rushed to the scene to help.
Arman Samsonian entered his plea in Van Nuys Superior Court.
On Aug. 22, police and prosecutors said Samsonian was driving his SUV recklessly when he sheared a fire hydrant and hit a light pole near the corner of Magnolia Boulevard and Ben Avenue.
The accident created a pool of electrified water, which killed Stacey Lee Schreiber, 39, and Irma Zamora, 40.
Six others suffered electrical burns, and five were hospitalized.
Van Nuys Superior Court Judge Karen J. Nudell ordered Samsonian to stand trial last month.
Samsonian's lawyer tried to argue that his client couldn't have reasonably foreseen the possibility of an electrified pool of water following the crash, but the judge ruled that Samsonian was driving negligently, without the regard of others, on that night.
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