Arraignment postponed for fatal bus crash driver

Arraignment was postponed earlier this week for the driver involved in the Colusa County bus crash last year that killed 11 people.

Quintin Joey Watts, 52, of Stockton, was scheduled to appear in court Tuesday for the first time since the fatal wreck. Watts, however, remains in prison at Deuel Vocational Institution in Tracy on an unrelated parole violation and was unable to attend.

District Attorney John Poyner plans to file a removal order to transfer Watts from Tracy to Colusa.

A new court date was not available, but Poyner said he hopes to begin proceedings in July.

Watts is charged with 11 felony counts of vehicular manslaughter and other traffic violations.

The owner of the charter bus, 68-year-old Daniel Cobb, was among those killed Oct. 5, 2008, when it crashed off rural Lonestar Road en route to Colusa Casino Resort. Watts, who was ejected from the bus, was one of more than 30 injured.

The bus was traveling an estimated 55 to 70 mph when at least seven passengers reported seeing Watts fall asleep, according to the CHP report. Cobb, the bus owner, attempted to grab the steering wheel at the last minute.

After a seven-month investigation, the California Highway Patrol concluded that Watts was the direct cause of this collision. The report said he had slept very little over the previous 40 hours leading up the fatal crash.

Contact Rob Parsons at 934-6800 or rparsons@tcnpress.com.