A Rohnert Park man was sentenced Monday to five years probation and 500 hours of community service after pleading no contest to misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter.
Daniel James Armstrong Rauer, who was 27 at the time, fell asleep at the wheel of his truck on July 11, 2013, drifted across the yellow line and hit another truck head-on. The driver of the second truck, Benny Clyde White, 66, of Sonoma, later died in the hospital of his injuries.
The accident took place on Arnold Drive near Sonoma Raceway.
Rauer told California Highway Patrol investigators that he fell asleep immediately prior to the collision. He said he had just started working a new job and was still adjusting to a work schedule that required driving during the night and early morning hours.
District Attorney Jill Ravitch said “This is a reminder to all of us that we must be alert when we get behind the wheel, and pull over if we feel fatigued. Our full attention is required at all times.”
After Rauer plead no contest to the charges last month, Judge Lawrence Ornell sentenced him to five years of probation and 500 hours of community service. The judge indicated that, as a condition of the community service work, Rauer needed to work on raising public awareness of the dangers of fatigued driving.
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