Justice not served for bus driver

Views from around the world. These opinions are not necessarily shared by newspapers.

The most important thing to know about Quinton Watts is that even the district attorney who prosecuted him and secured a sentence of 26 years now believes he deserves his freedom.

Watts was behind the wheel of a bus when it crashed in 2008, killing 11 passengers. Both the press and prosecutors portrayed Watts as an irresponsible driver with a long criminal rap sheet whose carelessness resulted in death. In reality, he suffers from a seizure disorder that likely explains why he blacked out and has no memory of the crash. A physician’s assistant was later disciplined for clearing Watts to drive despite his disorder, but jurors never heard about Watts’ seizures.

In a story called Blackout on Lone Star Road, Bee reporter Jason Pohl detailed the official errors and missteps that led to Watts’ imprisonment. ‘‘Prosecutors relied on dubious scientific claims about sleep deprivation and diabetes,’’ wrote Pohl. Watts’ race also may have played a role in the prosecution’s strategy to convict him. Pohl found that two potential Black jurors were dismissed.

Watts was trying to put his life back together, hoping to make $700 a week as a bus driver, when the accident took place.

Nothing can bring back the people who died on Lone Star Road in 2008. But Watts did not receive a fair trial and is also a victim. We urge Governor Gavin Newsom to commute his sentence.