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Former Iron Chef Found Guilty In Fatal Traffic Case On South Coast

It took only two hours for the jury to reach a verdict Thursday in a trial that had begun April 4th.

The case involved a celebrity driver who was accused of involuntary vehicular manslaughter in a crosswalk fatality.

Former Iron Chef Lawrence "Larry" Forgione was found guilty in the accident, which took place in February of 2018 and ended the life of a 90-year-old World War II veteran.

The 67-year-old chef was a figure in the food scene of the latter part of the 20th-century and won a James Beard award for his work.

The victim, Gilbert Ramirez, was lawfully crossing the street in the mid-block of State Street when he was hit.

Video evidence from one direction of the street showed a red light for the driver, but the defence argued that the crosswalk light in the opposite direction was showing green.

City traffic officials and the police department said that such a discrepancy wasn't possible, and that the wiring system for the lights would not allow for that to happen.

The jury agreed with officials' assessment and found Forgione guilty. He will be sentenced in late May.

Andy worked at KCLU from 2016 until 2022.
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