By: Katie Dowd
Source: SFGate, San Francisco (TNS)
Aug. 11—A member of a California school district board has been charged with vehicular manslaughter following the death of a woman in a forklift crash. David Baskett, who also serves on the board of Santa Maria Airport in Santa Barbara County, says he is innocent.
In May, Baskett was operating a Caterpillar forklift [telehandler] when it collided with a pickup truck on Skyway Drive and Hangar Street near the airport. A father and daughter who were in the truck both suffered injuries in the crash; Tiffany Ann Peterson, 39, of Orcutt died as a result of her injuries.
On Friday, the Santa Barbara County District Attorney's Office announced it filed manslaughter charges against Baskett, 81. “Drugs and alcohol were not a factor in the crash,” the DA's office said in a statement.
Baskett has vociferously denied culpability in Peterson's death. While the police investigation was ongoing, Baskett was banned from restricted areas of airport property, the Santa Barbara Independent reported; in response, Baskett sued the airport for violating his right to due process. He told the Independent that the forklift was stopped at the time of the crash.
“I was stopped and not moving. There was a safety vehicle behind me stopped and not moving,” he said. “I'm appalled at what the story is.”
The charge was brought forward after a joint investigation by the Santa Maria Police Department and the county district attorney’s office. Baskett is due in court to face an arraignment on Sept. 4, court records show.
Along with his place on the airport board, Baskett serves on the Santa Maria Joint High School Union District’s board of education. His term is set to expire in Dec. 2026.
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