The attorney for a truck driver accused in a deadly 2009 big rig crash in La Canada Flintridge told the jury that the crash was a tragic accident not a crime in his closing argument Wednesday.
The case went to the jury late Wednesday afternoon. They are expected to begin deliberations on Thursday.
On Tuesday, 46-year-old Marcos Costa listened through a Portuguese interpreter as the prosecutor spelled out the case against him.
Prosecutors allege that the big rig driver knew his truck had become a deadly weapon, but decided to take it down a steep mountain pass anyway.
"This was not just an accident," said Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Carolina Lugo.
It was April 1, 2009, when Costa's 25-ton, six-car transport careened down Angeles Crest Highway in La Canada Flintridge. The truck plowed into cars and ended up in a bookstore. Twelve people were injured and two people were killed. Angel Posca and his daughter Angelina were in a red sedan about to head home to Palmdale when Costa hit them, killing them instantly.
The District Attorney's Office argues that Costa illegally used Angeles Forest Highway and Angeles Crest Highway as a shortcut through the San Gabriel Mountains, which he was also unfamiliar with.
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Prosecutors also argue that Costa could smell his burning brakes and he saw smoke billing from below his truck for miles. At one point, they say, he stopped and poured water in an effort to cool the rig's brake system. They also argue that Costa ignored an off duty firefighter who pulled him over and told him that he needed to turn his rig around and not make the descent down the twisting and steep Angeles Crest Highway into town.
"When he continued to drive that big rig, he acted with a conscious disregard for human life," continued Lugo.
Costa faces seven felony counts in the incident, including two counts of murder.
His defense attorney, Edward Murphy, claimed Wednesday it was all an accident. He said Costa had no idea he was headed off into a mountainous road, one he was unfamiliar with. He also argued that Costa believed that his brakes had recovered from being overheated at the time he descended down the mountain.
Murphy also mentioned that Costa, a Brazilian, was an ordained minister in his church and that allegations of criminal intent were preposterous.
