Truck driver in crash that killed Arizona sheriff’s officer had license, log book problems, police say

A truck driver has been arrested on charges related to the death of a police officer in Arizona last week.

Sixty-two year old California-based truck driver Jorge Yanez Campos was arrested and is facing possible charges of manslaughter and aggravated assault.

Campos was arrested following a November 24 crash on S.R. 85 near Buckeye, Arizona, that killed Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office detention officer Justin Folsome.

Police say that Campos was driving northbound on S.R. 85 when he failed to slow for traffic stopped at a light, striking vehicles at speeds of 55 m.p.h. His truck hit Folsome’s car first, then pushed the car into two other vehicles.

Folsome died as a result of the crash. Three other people including Campos were taken to the hospital for treatment of injuries.

Campos later told police he believed he may have blacked out due to a high blood sugar problem that he had taken medicine for earlier in the day.

Campos was arrested at the hospital two days after the crash.

During the investigation into the crash, police reportedly uncovered several possible safety violations.

According to court documents, Campos had dropped off a load in Tempe, then drove to Nogales to pick up a load bound for a location in California. Police say that while in Nogales, Campos logged into sleeper berth status. His next log entry on November 24 was in Eloy, Arizona, two hours away from Nogales.

Campos reportedly told police that he was having regen issues while traveling from Eloy to California and that his truck shut off several times. “To bypass and override the sensor, Campos said he stuck a coin in the switch to try to keep the sensor from forcing the vehicle to stop,” police said. Campos said that he planned to have the truck repaired in San Bernardino.

Investigators also determined that Campos’ license was suspended after he failed to appear in court when he was cited for a different crash.