State patrol recommends charges in double fatal logging truck crash

The Washington State Patrol has recommended that the driver of a logging truck involved in a fatal accident in October be charged with two counts of vehicular homicide.

The State Patrol has given prosecutors the results of a six-month investigation into the crash. The Grays Harbor prosecutor's office will decide whether to file charges against Garland Massingham of Centralia.

Troopers have said Massingham was driving an overloaded truck at an unsafe speed when he dumped logs in front of a car driven by Daniel Johnson, a scientist working with state seismologist Anthony Qamar, who was also in the vehicle.

Both men were killed.

Troopers found that Massingham's truck was 7,700 pounds over the legal weight. It was also being driven at an unsafe speed, said the troopers' criminal investigation division, which also examined bolts that secured the load and found they had failed, causing the logs to fall.

"He came into a curve," said Trooper Brian George. "Because he was overweight and because of his speed, it was not safe."

Leonard Logging of Chehalis, whose truck Massingham was driving, refused to comment about the report.

The collision occurred along Highway 101, when the fully-loaded log truck lost its load, which fell into the path of the Saturn station wagon carrying the two men.

They had been on the way to the Olympic Peninsula to collect instruments and data concerning an earthquake that had occurred off the Washington coast.

Troopers said the truck driven by Massingham had been placed out of service a year ago because of an equipment violation. His truck had a bad brake hose.

After that incident, the logging company, owned by JB Leonard, was investigated and fined $500 for violations in which the drivers didn't keep accurate log books while on the road.

Last week the state Department of Labor and Industries filed two citations against JB Leonard. One was for loading trucks over the legal limit and the other was for not assuring trucks with defective parts were taken out of service. It inspected all seven of the company's trucks and found four had defects.

The company was fined $1,200 for each violation.

Susan Gilmore: 206-464-2054 or sgilmore@seattletimes.com