MENDOCINO Co., 10/5/21 — Gina Rae Bean is facing up to four years in state prison after she was found guilty last week of leaving the scene of the crash that killed a 19-year-old skateboarder, Calum Hunicutt, in Mendocino more than two years ago. Codefendant Ricky Santos, who was charged as an accessory after the fact over allegations that he attempted to repair the suspect vehicle, was found not guilty.
Bean was driving a Toyota Tundra north on U.S. Route 1 at the intersection of Little Lake Road — Mendocino’s only stoplight — when she struck Hunnicutt around 10:45 p.m. July 18, 2019. Hunnicutt had been skateboarding with a friend and headed west. He died at the scene. The driver fled.
“The state vehicle code mandates that the driver of a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in the injury or death of a person must immediately stop the vehicle and render aid, including summoning emergency help,” prosecutors said in a statement. “State law also requires a driver to report the accident without delay to the nearest law enforcement agency.”
Bean remained at large for more than a week, and made bail after her arrest, prompting frustration among Hunnicutt’s friends and family. A private Facebook group called Justice for Calum, which was established after Hunnicutt’s death, had grown to an estimated 1,300 members as of Monday evening. The group description, likely written in 2019, states that Bean is, “driving around town acting as if nothing has happened. She has not shown up in the booking logs. Local law enforcement are keeping a tight lip. We as a community cannot stand for this.”
The California Highway Patrol (CHP) initially referred Bean to the Mendocino County District Attorney’s Office for prosecution on charges of vehicular manslaughter and felony hit-and-run, but prosecutors ultimately charged her with the lesser crime of leaving the scene. According to court records, the defense and prosecution both stipulated that Hunnicutt had run a red light when he struck the side of Bean’s vehicle. He had been at fault for the crash, and while Bean did flee the scene they stipulate that Hunnicutt’s death was not caused by her failure to administer or summon aid.
More than two years passed before Bean’s 5-day trial before Judge Ann Moorman began last month. Bean waived her right to a jury, and Moorman reached a guilty verdict on Thursday, Sept. 30. Bean returns to court for sentencing Dec. 3 and is facing a maximum of four years in state prison. Defense attorney Mark Kalina did not respond to a request for comment on his client’s behalf.
You can read our previous coverage of the investigation into Hunnicutt’s death here.
The driver may have been intoxicated during the accident. There is no other reason for anyone to leave the scene of an accident.
Absolutely no other reason. 2 kilos of heroin in the backseat? Undressed driving? Fear of police brutality? That’s 3 in about 3 seconds…are you a District attorney by the way? Sound like one.
I know!!! She didn’t realize that she hit anyone?!?! If you knew her you wouldn’t even question that!! She was not intoxicated she was going to work! She has a huge heart and a beautiful soul but I guess all of you f$&@ing followers that can’t think for yourself will never know that because you jump to judge people without knowing anything except what your small minds will allow you to.. What happened that night could have happened to any one of us! There is a reason they are called accidents you know.. and there are so many errs in the media coverage that the age of Calum is different in three separate articles.. if they can’t get something that’s as easy to confirm as a persons age right, why would you believe anything else they report as facts? Maybe we should all take a step back, look at the bigger picture here, and realize that Gina is a human being and a mother and a daughter.. She is just as much a victim of this whole thing as Calum! Maybe even more so.. The only thing she is guilty of is being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Like I said before, that could have been any one of us that night… Wake up people! Give her back her life so she can raise her kids in peace! Calum would want that I am confident in that! He wouldn’t want the community to be so awful to her.. Before you decide to judge or make your own conclusions on this, pray, meditate, or however it is that you talk to the man upstairs, free your mind if what you think you know, and allow him to show you the truth about Gina and the tragic death of Calum… I think you would be glad you did and you would leave Gina in peace in the end.. She’s an angel not a monster leave her alone before you destroy her!!!
Not much is made of the fact that Calum ran a red light, or that he ran into the side of her vehicle. These are significant facts of this case and should not be down-played or ignored. If you know Gina, you would know that she is a caring and responsible adult. If it was a car that ran the red light, this accident would have had a totally different outcome: they would have been completely responsible. I agree with the person above. This was an accident and it could happen to anyone.
She wasn’t charged with his death. The DA acknowledged that Callum was at fault, she was charged with leaving an accident. She testified that she SPOKE to a firefighter at the scene and still didn’t think anything of it.
Four years for accidentally killing someone? Sounds fair.