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Prosecution rests; Franco defense witnesses testify about man leaving scene
Gretchen Schlosser West Central Tribune
Published Monday, August 04, 2008

WILLMAR — The prosecution rested this morning, and the defense team began calling witnesses in the trial of Olga Marina Franco Del Cid, 24 of Minneota. Franco is accused of a total of 24 criminal charges stemming from the fatal Feb. 19 school bus crash near Cottonwood.

Three witnesses — James Blodgett, Fabian Marcial, and the defendant’s cousin Luciana Franco — testified that they came upon the accident along state Highway 23 and saw a person running away from the scene west along County Road 24.

Franco’s defense team, led by Manuel Guerrero, has been allowed to argue that Franco’s boyfriend, Francisco S. Mendoza, was driving the van and caused the accident. Two of the witnesses identified Mendoza by his photo during testimony. They said he was known as “Samuelâ€