Driver acquitted in Merced County car accident that killed two people in 2023
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- Jury acquits driver charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter in 2022 crash.
- Victims were two sisters struck while walking; driver said she blacked out due to cancer.
- Merced County DA Nicole Silveira’s office expressed sympathy and acknowledged frustration.
A Merced County jury found a woman not guilty on two counts of vehicular manslaughter, ending a saga that began in Atwater in 2022.
Carolyn Rose and her sister Billie Edwards, both in their 70s, were hit and killed by an SUV while taking a walk on East Juniper Avenue in Atwater on Nov. 2, 2022.
Authorities said the vehicle was traveling west on East Juniper when it left the roadway and struck the women and a light pole.
The SUV’s driver, Debra Huddleston, was charged with two counts of vehicular manslaughter. Three and a half years later, Huddleston was acquitted by a jury.
A news release from Merced County District Attorney Nicole Silveira’s office said it “recognizes the profound grief, anger and heartbreak surrounding this case. Our hearts remain with the victims’ families and loved ones, and we understand how deeply painful this outcome is for them and for the community.”
Huddleston told police she was a cancer patient and blacked out behind the wheel, according to a Merced Focus report.
After the incident, family members told the Merced Sun-Star that they did not feel that the charges — or the potential sentences they carried, of one year in county jail — were sufficient punishment for the accident that resulted in their relatives’ death.
In 2022, family members told the Sun-Star that the two sisters were always together, going on their daily walks, shopping, going to lunch or going to doctor appointments together.
The District Attorney’s Office said it was disappointed in the jury’s decision to acquit Huddleston. “While the jury ultimately reached a not-guilty verdict, we recognize that no court outcome can lessen the loss experienced by the families,” the DA’s news release said. “We respect the jury process while acknowledging the pain and frustration this decision has caused.”
This story was originally published April 8, 2026 at 6:00 AM.
