Company, truck driver cited in fatal runaway tire wreck

DURANGO (AP) - A New Mexico transportation agency has determined that a trailer that lost two tires on U.S. 550, causing a crash that killed a Durango man, had a defective rim and was overdue for an inspection.

Justin Tucker of the state Motor Transportation Division says the truck's driver, 34-year-old Ronnie Jacquez of Bloomfield, N.M., will be cited with operating unsafe equipment and failing to inspect the flatbed. Moberg Welding, which owned the flatbed, will be cited with failing to inspect the trailer annually as required by law.

Tucker says the citations aren't criminal but will count against their safety scores.

Moberg Welding declined to comment.

The tires came off the southbound trailer March 13 near Aztec, N.M. One tire jumped a divider and crashed though the windshield of a northbound SUV, killing a passenger, 44-year-old Ron Newton.

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