(The following story by Jason Kristufek appeared on the Ames Tribune website on January 13.)
TOLEDO, Iowa — Wayne Wierson of Ames told a Tama County jury on Monday that “it looked like a bomb had gone off” after a van crossed the centerline of a two-lane highway and crashed into five motorcycles, one after the other.
Wierson was the only Mid-Iowa rider in a group of six to escape serious injury when the accident occurred along U.S. Highway 30 on June 22, 2002, near Chelsea.
Arlen Pickering, 53, of Story City; Douglas Sampson, 51, of Ames; and Ross Holland, 57, of Boone were killed.
Richard Vauble of Ames lost part of his right leg and broke his pelvis. James Olson was unconscious in a hospital bed because of a head injury until September 2002.
The van’s driver, Gary Lee Butler, 49, of Des Moines, is on trial this week and charged with three counts of vehicular homicide, three counts of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of serious injury by vehicle.
“There were debris, fluid and glass everywhere,” said Wierson, his hands shaking as he frequently wiped his dry mouth. “The van came out of nowhere.”
Butler’s trial began with Wierson’s testimony. More witnesses were scheduled to testify today. The trial is expected to last through Wednesday at the Tama County Courthouse in Toledo.
Wierson told the jury that he will never forget what he saw in his rearview mirror shortly after 11 a.m. on that clear, beautiful summer morning.
He was the only one not struck by Butler’s van. He gradually slowed his motorcycle after the accident, not realizing what had just happened.
“There was nobody back there,” he said. “I didn’t see any of my friends.”
Tama County Attorney Brent Heeren claims Butler was reckless by likely falling asleep at the wheel when he crossed the centerline and slammed into the riders.
Testimony is expected to be introduced today that claims Butler had not slept for nearly 25 hours and was working his 16th straight hour when the accident occurred, Heeren said.
Butler was employed with Brown’s Crew Car Co. of Wyoming. The company has a contract with the Union Pacific Railroad to transport crews throughout the state.
The morning manager of the transport company, Darryl George, who’s now retired from the company, testified today it was his policy that drivers spent no more than 10 hours on the road and no more than 13 hours on a shift in any given day.
At the time of the accident, Butler was heading home after dropping off a crew in Lowden. The riders were heading to an open house at J & P Cycles in Anamosa.
Keith Rigg, Butler’s attorney, said in his opening statement that there is no proof his client fell asleep at the wheel. He said Butler had plenty of rest during his shift and was not driving the entire time.
Rigg also said Butler, who sustained two broken ribs and a collapsed lung from the accident, is at fault for crossing the centerline but that it does not mean he was reckless.
“He got two feet over the centerline at exactly the wrong moment,” Rigg said. “This is an accident.”
Butler’s defense will also try to claim that the initial impact of the accident caused the front wheels of the van to lock up. Photographs introduced on Monday show the van’s front-end caved in.
“There was nothing he could do,” Rigg said. “He couldn’t steer. The impact pinned the front tire.”
Pickering, who was the leader of the group because he was steady on the throttle and didn’t speed, was the first to be struck by the van. He died on impact.
“It happened all of a sudden,” Wierson said. “His bike was exploding right in front of me.”
Sampson and Holland were found in the ditch side-by-side. Both were killed after being struck by the van.
The three riders who were killed were all riding closest to the centerline. The three closest to the shoulder survived.
All six were riding in a staggered formation about a second apart.
Vauble, who has owned a painting company in Ames for more than 30 years, testified that he swerved to miss Butler’s van. His right leg got caught on the van’s rear bumper and was torn off.
Doctors also told him that the accident broke his pelvis.
“It was like a jigsaw puzzle that had to be put back together,” he said on the witness stand Monday.
Vauble now needs a cane to help him walk. His leg was amputated above the knee. He said he can’t walk more than 10 yards without the pain becoming unbearable.
“They told me the most I might ever be able to walk at one time is a whole city block,” Vauble said.
Olson – who suffered a cracked skull, cracked shoulder blade, broken collar bone, crushed ribs, broken foot and concussion in the crash – spent nearly three months unconscious in a hospital bed.
His motorcycle never made contact with Butler’s van. Instead authorities say he laid his bike down to avoid the collision.
Olson testified this morning that he didn’t remember anything about the accident. But, he said he was told, “I was pretty much body surfing down the highway for 125 feet.”