Driver in Mexico's Baja 500 Claims He Was Not Jailed

Baja 500 Driver Claims He Was Not Charged

Contrary to standard procedure, news reports

BY <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />NANCY CONROY

The owner of the car involved in a fatality during the Baja 500 has denied that either himself or anyone involved in the crash were ever detained or charged as a result of the incident.  During the recent Baja 500, competitor Chris Lakken was killed in a tragic accident on the racecourse.  Under standard Mexican procedure, the driver of a car that caused a fatality is usually immediately jailed pending an investigation.  This automatic detention does not mean that the driver is guilty or at fault, only that the police are investigating.  Ensenada news outlets also reported that the driver was detained and subjected to a legal procedure.

The owner of the car, Mike Jenkins, said “I am the owner of the vehicle.  However, I was not driving the vehicle at the time of the accident, Robert Anderson was.  Neither myself, Robert or the co-driver Alex Handal were ever charged or even held for that matter for any legal issues regarding Chris’ death or the accident. The deceased widow did sign a pardon for SCORE and all involved parties.”

Under Mexican law, whenever there is a fatal car crash, the driver of the car is immediately taken into custody and charged with “Homicidio Culposo”, which means Involuntary Manslaughter.  If the driver is injured, he is taken under police escort to a local hospital until he is well enough to face the judge.  A person charged with Involuntary Manslaughter may not leave Mexico until he goes before the Judge, even for medical treatment.  If the family, spouse, or legal guardian of the deceased person grants the driver a pardon, the driver may be released.  However, the driver must still face a judicial procedure in front of a judge, who determines if the individual was responsible for the accident or not. 

The Baja 500 fatality, the recovery of the body, and its legal aftermath were widely reported in the Mexican press.  However, the local paper where these reports appeared, El Vigia, has recently been reporting news inaccurately.  The same reporter that published the accounts of the SCORE fatality recently published a front page article about the Baja Golden Beach real estate scam that badly distorted and mischaracterized the story.  That same paper reported that the rescuers had a hard time retrieving Chris Lakken's body because of the difficult nature of the terrain. They then reported that a judge had ordered the driver detained to face the Involuntary Manslaughter charges, and that SCORE officials were present at the police station to give support.  They said that a SCORE representative, Oscar Ramos, mentioned that the driver had been taken to a hospital in the US for treatment of injuries. This news was in the local papers and reported on television for several days.  These reports appear to contradict, in part, the statements made by the owner of the car.  

SCORE has attempted to minimize the accident, as if they want to pretend that it never happened.  They did not mention the fatality during the awards ceremony, and the local press described SCORE’s approach as “hermetic”.  This attitude along with the conflicting reports have only raised more questions about what exactly happened after the accident.