Blame Game

FATAL CRASH CASE ADDS NEW TWIST DEFENSE NOW BLAMES VICTIM
Published on Saturday, April 25, 1998
© 1998 The Arizona Republic
Byline: By Jim Walsh, The Arizona Republic

Aimee Ellis never had a chance when a drunken driver slammed into her Jeep Cherokee, apparently as she waited for a light to turn green.
Ellis' vehicle burst into flames, burning her to death.
Now, a lawyer for the accused drunken driver is preparing to blame Ellis for the accident, arguing that she turned in front of his client and that she had been drinking the night of Dec. 13th.
A Chandler police investigation concluded that Matt Demos was going 77 mph in a 45 mph zone and was heading west on Chandler Boulevard when his pickup rear-ended Ellis' vehicle.
Demos never braked. The Cherokee was thrown 180 feet by the force of the collision and was quickly consumed in fire, according to court documents filed by Anthony Novitsky, a deputy Maricopa County attorney who is prosecuting Demos.
Ellis, 20, was ''burned well beyond recognition,'' Novitsky wrote.
But Larry Kazan, Demos' defense attorney, offers an entirely different view of the accident.
In court documents, Kazan argues that Ellis was actually at fault and that she had a blood alcohol reading of 0.07 percent.
Kazan wrote that Chandler police dismissed the accounts of a witness who said Ellis was heading east on Chandler Boulevard before she made a left-turn in front of Demos.
Two other witnesses told police that Ellis was waiting for the light.
Kazan said that Ellis' blood alcohol level is important.
In further court filings, Kazan wrote that among his potential defenses is that Demos did not cause the accident, that he did not act recklessly and that he did not have intent to commit second-degree murder.
It's not yet certain whether Ellis' blood-alcohol level will be part of the trial.
Novitsky previously had attempted to have information about Ellis' blood-alcohol level suppressed from the trial, but was unsuccessful.
On Monday, Judge James Keppel of Maricopa County Superior Court is scheduled to reconsider his ruling on the the blood alcohol level.
Ellis had attended a Christmas party at the home of her boss, John Spensieri, who told police she had eaten and drank one beer.
''He added that when Aimee left his residence, she was definitely not impaired,'' Chandler police Officer Jim Hanrahan wrote.
Police say Demos had a 0.23 percent blood alcohol count after the wreck, more than twice the 0.10 percent limit at which Arizona drivers are presumed drunk. He also had smoked marijuana that evening as well, police say.
In addition to drunken driving, Demos is charged with second-degree murder, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia.
A trial before Keppel is scheduled to begin May 4, but a settlement conference before Judge Brian Ishikawa will be held before then. If no agreement is reached, the case the will go before Keppel.