Trial of man suspected of texting while driving in fatal road accident opens

A Costa Mesa man showed no regard for human life while he drove through Newport Beach and text messaged, ultimately killing a pedestrian, prosecutors said during the man’s trial Monday.

The defense, however, argued during opening statements Monday morning that Martin Burt Kuehl, 42, wasn’t text messaging when his vehicle struck and killed Martha Ovalle, 32, as she crossed the street on Westcliff Drive in Newport Beach in August 2008.

He has been riddled with guilt ever since the crash, Kuehl’s public defender, Adam Vining, told jurors.

“He was completely undone. He was horrified,” testified Kyle Chrystal, who was driving behind Kuehl at the time of the crash. “It was as bad as I’ve seen anyone like that.”

Kuehl sat at the defendant’s table wiping tears from his eyes as Chrystal described watching Kuehl’s GMC Yukon drive straight into Ovalle without so much as braking.

Ovalle was crossing a designated crosswalk at about 8:31 a.m. Aug. 29, 2008 when she was fatally hit.

Prosecutors told jurors during opening statements that Kuehl’s phone records show he was text messaging while driving for the half hour leading up to the crash.

Vining claims his client only texted once while behind the wheel, and even then he was stopped at a red light.

Kuehl faces up to nine years in prison if convicted.