(Not sure if this got posted at the time.  It should be webbed
somewhere, perhaps off the web site for me or one set up for Ashlee an
Stacy.  When I was talking to Kristi at one of the SF pickets a few
months ago, she bet me that May 17, 2000 was a Wed.  It was.

It might also be noted that this case was filed one week after the
Grand Jury was sent a letter about scientology's favorable treatment
by the DA's office.   HKH)

Hemet News  May l0, 200l    Page B4

Arraignment:  Ashlee  Shaner died after hitting a tractor operated by
Thomas Nove of Moreno Valley  

By Erin D. Randolph The press Enterprise

Hemet:  A man involved in a traffic collision that killed a l6 year
old San Jacainto girl pleaded not guilty to a charge  of vehicular
manslaughter Wednesday .

Thomas Nove 35, of Moreno Valley  was taken into custody on an
unrelated matter following the arraignment in  Hemet.

He is charged with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter in connection
with the death of Ashlee Shaner last year.  She was killed the night
of May l7 when her car crashed into the bucket of a tractor that was
blocking Gilman Springs Road.  She was returning to her an Jacinto
home from an evening bible study class.  

Nove told police he was trying to park the vehicle  but had blocked
the road with the tractor to allow a paving vehicle to cross the
highway, according to court records.  

He told investigators that he saw two cars coming toward him but
thought they would pull onto the road shoulder.  Instead, Ashlee's car
crashed into the tractor, killing her.  Ashlee's sister Klarissa, then
8, ducked moments before impact and suffered minor injuries.
Ashlee's mother, Michelle Shaner, who was following her daughter home
that night, told investigators the tractor was not visible.

Nove told officers he was working late the night Ashlee died to finish
some work for the Church of Scientology's Golden Era Productions.
According to an investigation report, Nove, who was employed with
Taseco Corp, a Redlands-based contractor, had an expired driver's
license since l992.  During the investigation, California Highway
Patrol Officer Eric Nolte said no warning lights, flares or
construction workers were on the road to guide motorists around the
tractor.  There were no street lights in the area.

Erin D. Randolph can be reached by e-mail at erando...@pe.com or by
phone at 909-487-5229