RECKLESS

Navy Officer Guilty of Manslaughter in Deadly Drunk Bridge Plunge

Richard Sepolio, 27, was drunk when his crash killed four.

A Navy officer who drove off a bridge in San Diego, killing four people below, was convicted Wednesday of vehicular manslaughter. Prosecutors say Richard Sepolio, 27, had been drinking on Oct. 15, 2016, and was arguing with his girlfriend over the phone when he tried to overtake another car on the San Diego-Coronado Bridge. He lost control of his pickup truck, which plunged 60 feet into a crowd below the bridge—four died, and seven were hurt. The prosecution told jurors that Sepolio chose “to drive irritated, impaired, and impatient.” A jury found Sepolio guilty of vehicular manslaughter and driving under the influence causing injury, but acquitted him of the more serious charges of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, NBC News reports. He also was acquitted of reckless driving and driving over the legal alcohol limit causing injury. Sepolio faces a maximum of 18 years in prison.