By Larry Judkins
Glenn County Observer
A motorcyclist with a history of speeding and other traffic violations lost his life Saturday night when his Honda broadsided an SUV on Highway 32 in front of Country Pumpkins east of Orland.
At about 8:28 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 21, Chester William Johnson, 40, of Orland, was riding his red 2023 Honda motorcycle east on Highway 32, just east of County Road Q and near Country Pumpkins and its corn maze. California Highway Patrol officers, Orland police officers, Glenn County Sheriff’s deputies, Orland volunteer firefighters, and Westside Ambulance personnel all responded to the scene.
Jennifer Chua, 49, of Chico, was driving a blue 2017 Subaru SUV west on Highway 32, just east of County Road Q, at a stated speed of 10 miles per hour. She started to make a left turn into a driveway at 7155 Highway 32 on the south side of Highway 32, directly across the road from Country Pumpkins, 7152 Highway 32.
According to the California Highway Patrol and other sources, Johnson was riding his motorcycle at a high rate of speed and passing vehicles on the shoulder. As a result, he was unable to see the Subaru making the left turn and collided with the right (passenger) side of the SUV.
Johnson was ejected from the Honda and sustained fatal injuries, dying at the scene. He was pronounced deceased at 8:42 p.m., and a coroner’s investigation was begun by Deputy Vargas.
Johnson’s next of kin, Corene Mae Ledbeter Johnson, was notified of the death.
Chua and three minor passengers were all wearing their seatbelts and were uninjured. The children’s names were improperly withheld from both the CHP’s and Glenn County Sheriff’s news releases, although the CHP’s release, unlike the sheriff’s, gave their ages as 16, 15, and 9, and indicated all three are from Chico and all three are boys.
According to CHP Officer Roach, alcohol is not suspected to be a factor in this accident.
In previous years in October, CalTrans had been known to put out electronic signs, warning drivers of an event ahead at Country Pumpkins. No such cautions are to be found this year, however.
Following the crash, the roadway was completely blocked, and officers closed the highway at County Road P. Nevertheless, drivers continued to head eastbound on Highway 32 from Road P.
A law enforcement officer was heard saying that drivers were traveling through the intersection, going east toward the accident scene. Another officer responded, “We are putting road flares out now. We are having problems with this intersection.
Bambauer Towing responded to pick up both the Subaru and the Honda. At 9:58 p.m., Bambauer notified the CHP that they were stuck in traffic and asked if they could use the shoulder.
However, two minutes later, the south (eastbound) lane of Highway 32 was opened, and nine minutes after that both lanes were opened.
It should be noted that Johnson was no stranger to speeding and reckless driving. From 2002 to 2014, he had gone to court for at least eight cases involving traffic violations in Glenn County.
Among these, he was convicted in 2007 of speeding over 100 miles per hour; he was convicted in 2012 of exceeding 55 miles per hour; and he was convicted in 2014 of speeding in a 70 mile per hour zone.
If Chester William Johnson’s name seems familiar to Observer readers, it may be because this reporter did a story regarding him in January of this year. It read:
Orland man charged with child sexual abuse
By Larry Judkins
Glenn County Observer
Readers: Please remember that in our criminal justice system, the accused is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty in a court of law….
However, not only is the presumption of innocence a basic premise of our system of government, so is the concept of a fully informed public. Ignorance and democracy cannot exist simultaneously.
Anyway, at about 10:37 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 24, 2022, Deputy Ramirez received a report of a cold sexual assault of juveniles at an address … near Orland.
Deputy Ramirez met with the caller, Zandi Lin Lawrence of Corning….
Deputy Ramirez initiated an investigation. He concluded his investigation, and it was turned over to the Major Crimes Unit for further action.
According to the sheriff’s log for the Dec. 24 incident, [one of the] “involved parties” included … Chester William Johnson of Orland….
At about 7:54 a.m. on Friday, Dec. 30, Chester William Johnson, 39, of Orland, was booked into the Glenn County Jail on charges alleging continuous sexual abuse of a child, lewd or lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14, sexual penetration with force on a child under the age of 14, and willful cruelty to a child that could result in injury or death (all felonies).
His bail was set at $315,000. He was taken into custody near Orland by a Glenn County Sheriff’s deputy.
On Thursday, Jan. 5, the Glenn County District Attorney’s Office charged Johnson with alleged continuous sexual abuse of a child, and lewd or lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14 (again, both charges are felonies).
The matter is next set to be in court (Donald Cole Byrd presiding) at 8 a.m. on Friday, Jan. 13. At this hearing, Attorney Robert L. Marshall, who works out of Oroville, may be [and in fact was] retained….
Since the writing of the preceding story, a pretrial conference had been set for Friday, Oct. 6, just 15 days before Johnson’s death. Another pretrial conference was scheduled for Friday, Nov. 3, about 13 days after his death.
Whether the stress of Johnson’s impending trial was a contributing factor in the fatal collision will probably never be known with any degree of certainty.
The Glenn County Observer 