The Willow Glen Resident

San Jose man killed when car hits tree, splits in two

By Cecily Barnes

One man was killed and two others were injured when a vehicle smashed into a tree at Pine and Bird avenues on Saturday, March 14. Shards of glass could still be seen on the lawn in front of 757 Pine Ave nearly one week after the accident.

Dennis Kaiser, 25, of San Jose, was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, which San Jose police say occurred at about 1:15 a.m.

According to the police report, Kaiser and his brother Douglas Kaiser, 20, and Jesse Montijo, 19, were speeding eastbound on Pine Avenue in a brown 1980 Chevrolet Camaro late Saturday night when they ran a stop sign and lost control of the vehicle. The Camaro broadsided a tree and split in half, sending the three young men flying.

The splintering wreckage trapped Dennis Kaiser underneath a portion of the vehicle. Driver Douglas Kaiser was taken to Valley Medical Center to be treated for serious injuries, while Montijo was treated for minor injuries and released.

Police suspect that alcohol was involved in the collision, but the driver's blood alcohol level has not yet been determined, said Sgt. Chris Moore. Investigators are also studying whether the car had been involved in a drag race, since three witnesses reportedly heard another vehicle speeding off from the scene, Moore said.

"They're asking anyone with information to contact Detective Kevin Cassidy at the SJPD traffic investigations unit at 277-4654," he said.

Pine Avenue resident Dayna Douglas said that the accident woke her up on Saturday night. "It sounded like a car was skidding out of control," she said. When her boyfriend walked around the corner the next morning at 8:20, "they were just rolling the body over," Douglas said.

August Sosso, who has lived on the corner of Bird and Pine avenues for 47 years, said that traffic has always been bad at that intersection. "I've lived here 40 years and seen seven people killed," Sosso said. "It's not the city's fault, though; they've done the best they can."

According to Charlie Martarano from the city department of streets and traffic, there's been only one accident on the corner of Pine and Bird in Willow Glen since 1994.

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