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Man Charged With Involuntary Manslaughter After Crash Kills One, Injures Second On Central Coast

Federal prosecutors have charged a Santa Barbara County man with involuntary manslaughter following a head-on traffic collision which left one person dead, and a second seriously injured. The crash happened Tuesday afternoon on Santa Lucia Canyon Road near Vandenberg Air Force Base.

Witnesses told CHP investigators that a Jeep crossed the center line of the road, and smashed into the oncoming car. Investigators say the Jeep was stolen. The driver fled the scene.

Following a search, Michael James Culligan was arrested at a nearby train station. Prosecutors say the 29 year old Lompoc man admitted using drugs before the crash.

The names of the victims haven’t been released. Because the collision occurred on Air Force Base property, federal prosecutors are handling the case.

Lance Orozco has been News Director of KCLU since 2001, providing award-winning coverage of some of the biggest news events in the region, including the Thomas and Woolsey brush fires, the deadly Montecito debris flow, the Borderline Bar and Grill attack, and Ronald Reagan's funeral.