On March 19, 2012 at approximately 2:21 a.m., officers were in the area of SE 10th Ave and S. Arthur St. They heard a traffic collision and responded to the intersection. Upon their arrival they discovered a 2005 Chevy pickup driven by Freddie Guajardo, WM, 22 had been northbound on Arthur. He struck a 1998 Nissan Sentra traveling eastbound on 10th. The Sentra was being driven by Dillon Charles Lavallee, WM, 18. There was one passenger in the Nissan. He is identified as Raymond Lewis Bates, BM, 56. Bates died at the scene as result of injuries from the crash. Lavallee left the scene on foot. He was later found at his home and transported to a local hospital with non-life threatening injuries. He was not arrested. Guajardo was arrested at the scene, taken to a local hospital for a medical evaluation, and then booked into the Potter County Sheriff’s Office Jail on a charge of Intoxicated Manslaughter. Justice of the Peace Bosquez has ordered an autopsy on Bates. The case is being investigated by the Traffic Investigations Unit of the Amarillo Police Department, and investigators have not established which vehicle ran the red light.
