Family of Pedestrian Killed by Alleged Drunk Driver Demands a Second-Degree Murder Charge

As the family of Kathleen Joan Moorhead prepares to say their final good-byes at a service Saturday, they are also asking the District Attorney's Office to charge the alleged drunken driver who killed her with second-degree murder, rather than manslaughter. 

Ruel Sasser, 70, of Concord has been charged with vehicular manslaugher while intoxicated and related DUI counts, stemming from the crash that killed Moorhead.

His blood-alcohol level was 0.15, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.8 when he lost control of his pickup truck while driving on Treat Boulevard the evening of July 17. Sasser was traveling eastbound approaching Bancroft Road when his pickup jumped the median of the six-lane road into oncoming travel. He then traveled back into the eastbound lanes and struck Moorhead, who was walking along the sidewalk. She was treated at the scene for her injuries then taken to John Muir Medical Center where she died a short time later. 

The family of Moorhead, an attorney who worked locally as well as was a retired US Army Colonel, are concerned that the maximum penalty for vehicular manslaughter is  only one year in  county jail, or 4 to 10 years state prison. 

The family believes Sasser should be charged with second-degree whose penalty is 15 years to life in state prison. 

The family cites several comments on the blog Claycord.com, in which posters said Sasser may have type-1 diabetes. In researching online articles on diabetes, including articles published by UC San Francisco and the Mayo Clinic, they learned that diabetic men should not consumer more than two alcoholic drinks per day and should never drive after consuming alcohol.

"Given this increased risk, if Mr. Sasser is found to have type-1 diabetes, Ms. Moorhead's family believes it would be yet another reason that Deputy District Attorney Steven Bolen should amend the charges to include murder in the second degree," the statement read. 

"We are devastated by the loss of Kathleen," says Nancy Van Tassel, Ms. Moorhead's sister. "

She said that the family has suffered this kind of loss before.

Susan Rushton, Kathleen Moorhead's oldest sister, was killed in 1969 at the age of 19 by a drunk driver in Richmond while she was driving home from work. Irvin Shioshi, the man convicted in her killing received just 90 days in county jail. The family says it is devastated to be reliving the same tragedy more than 40 years later. Kathleen Moorhead's mother, Betty Rushton, 82, of Vacaville, CA, has now lost two of her three children to drunk drivers, the statement says. Nancy Van Tassel, Ms. Moorhead's sister, has lost both of her sisters to drunk drivers.

We are asking Deputy District Attorney Steven Bolen to charge Ruel Sasser with second-degree murder. This is the second time this has happened to our family, and the person responsible shouldn't be allowed to walk away with a slap on the wrist. We don't want other families to go through the same pain."

A memorial service for Moorhead will take place Saturday 2 to 5 p.m. at the Veterans Memorial Building, 3780 Mt. Diablo Boulevard, Lafayette. At 3:30 p.m., an Army Honor Guard will play Taps, fold the American flag and present it to Kathleen's mother, Betty Rushton, and perform a 21-shot gun salute.