Searching for justice

Deepa Bharath

Chris Potter was wearing jeans and a white shirt with blue pinstripes.

The full-sleeved shirt was a little loose on her -- for good reason.

It was once her father’s shirt.

“I miss him very much,” Potter said Friday morning, a tiny teardrop

dancing in the corner of her eye as she stood at the corner of Industrial

Way and Newport Boulevard in Costa Mesa. “Wearing his shirt makes me feel

closer to him.”

It was at this very intersection that her father, longtime Costa Mesa

resident Douglas Boniface, was killed Sept. 23, hit by a speeding vehicle

as he was crossing Newport Boulevard on his bicycle.

On Friday, Potter stood there in his shirt, holding up a sign asking

anyone who might have seen the accident to call police.

“This intersection is never quiet,” Potter said, watching a

never-ending stream of cars whizzing past her. “I’m sure somebody saw

what happened and was touched by what they saw.”

Potter stood there Thursday and Friday between 7 and 9 a.m., hoping

that routine early morning commuters, cyclists or surfers might offer a

tip.

Jason Tillery of Newport Beach, driver of the car that hit Boniface,

was arrested on suspicion of vehicular manslaughter and driving under the

influence of an intoxicant. He was released on $100,000 bail Sept. 24 and

is scheduled to be arraigned Oct. 24 at the Harbor Justice Center.

At the time of the incident, Tillery was driving 60 to 70 mph in a

45-mph zone, according to Costa Mesa Police reports.

“We’re looking for people who might have seen it firsthand,” said

Traffic Investigator Floyd Waldron. Finding those people would help

determine the facts of the case, he said.

And any additional information might help determine in court if

Tillery’s actions were voluntary or involuntary.

So far, passersby have had nothing to offer Potter but empathy. One

teenager brought her a cup of coffee as she was standing on the sidewalk.

A cyclist offered his condolences. Another woman gave her flowers.

“I’m just overwhelmed by the support my family has got from this

community,” said Potter. “But we just lost a very special person. Our

lives will never be the same again.”

Douglas Boniface was young at heart, a healthy 76.

Every morning, at the crack of dawn, the retired carpenter would head

for the waves on his bicycle. He loved the beach. He enjoyed taking brisk

walks along the shore.

And when he came back home, his wife would have his favorite breakfast

waiting on the dining table -- bacon, eggs, fried tomatoes and onions.

But that breakfast was never eaten last Saturday. Boniface never came

home.

He will be sorely missed not just by his wife, two daughters and eight

grandchildren, but also his friends and neighbors in Costa Mesa, where he

has lived for 40 years.

“He was always ready to help people,” said Potter. “He’d take out

trash for neighbors. He would make punch for his line-dancing friends. He

was just a really neat person.”

FYI

If you have information about this incident, please call Investigator

Floyd Waldron at (714) 754-5264.