Jehovah's Witness' Death Case Over

c The Associated Press

By LINDA DEUTSCH AP Special Correspondent
POMONA, Calif. (AP) --

In a trial that sounded like something thought up for a law school class, a drunken driver was convicted of manslaughter and not murder Friday in the case of a Jehovah's Witness who died after refusing blood transfusions.  

The jury deliberated 3 1/2 days before reaching the verdict against Keith Cook, a 32-year-old auto mechanic.

Cook plowed his truck into a car March 7, pushing the vehicle into Jadine Russell, who was standing by the side of the road.

Mrs. Russell, 55, suffered broken bones and severe bleeding. But she told emergency workers and doctors ``No blood!'' at least 10 times, and even tried to pull out an intravenous line, relatives said.

Defense attorneys argued that Mrs. Russell's refusal of blood transfusions actually killed her, while prosecutors said Cook was guilty of murder.

``He set in motion a chain of events that eventually led to the death of Jadine Russell,'' prosecutor Larry Larson said. ``You can conclude the lack of a transfusion was a contributing factor in her death. But he can't rely on someone saving him from these actions that he has caused.''

Larson said the manslaughter conviction carries essentially the same penalty as murder -- 15 years to life -- because Cook has a prior conviction for drunken driving. Defense attorney Charles Unger disputed that, saying Cook faces only four to 10 years. Sentencing was set for Feb. 11.

Jurors left the courtroom without commenting.  

Trials such as Cook's are rare. But in October, a Louisiana appeals court reviewed a similar case and upheld three vehicular homicide convictions against a drunken driver. One of the victims was a Jehovah's Witness who refused blood transfusions and died.

Jehovah's Witnesses believe there is a biblical basis to refusing other people's blood.  

Cook was convicted of gross vehicular manslaughter, driving under the influence and causing injury to Mrs. Russell's daughter, Jennifer. The jury found that he injured two police officers while driving with a blood-alcohol level of at least 0.08 percent, the legal limit.  

Mrs. Russell's husband, James, said his greatest satisfaction was that the verdict ensures Cook will not be back on the road driving drunk.

Witnesses said that on the day of the accident, Cook began drinking on his own before buying a keg of beer for a birthday party. An expert estimated that to reach his eventual 0.17 percent blood-alcohol level, Cook must have had more than 13 beers over more than five hours.  

Cook then got into his truck, drove down a hill and plowed into the car that hit Mrs. Russell, who was standing with law enforcement officers discussing a fender-bender involving Mrs. Russell and another driver.

The prosecutor said Mrs. Russell may not have lived even if she had received a transfusion.  

Superior Court Judge Reginald Yates instructed the jury that ``if you find the defendant's conduct was a cause of death, then it is no defense that the conduct of some other person, even the injured or deceased person, contributed to the death.''