Troy and Baden Biddle were killed in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 80 in San Pablo.

California drunk driver Fred Lowe, 47, of Sacramento kills 4 people in a white Nissan sedan after he collides with it with his blue Mercedes on I-80 in San Pablo, CA

Napa community mourns loss of two killed in hit-and-run crash

Monday, November 27, 2017 10:30PM

NAPA, Calif. (KGO) --

A hit and run crash that ended with four family members dead and six others wounded claimed the lives of a father and son from Napa who were described by community members as an "All-American Family" taken from this Earth too soon.

Cam Neal, Athletic Director and teacher at Vintage High School in Napa recalls the joy Daryl Horn and his son Joe brought to all around him.
"I wish people have a chance to know Daryl and see what Joe was gonna do. He was a real special kid."

This is the sentiment, echoed by so many in Napa who knew 14-year old Joe Horn and his father Daryl Horn. The news of their passing, almost too much to bear.

Just days after Thanksgiving, Daryl was on a family trip with Joe and his older son, Jared, and two relatives from Washington State, 52 year old Troy Biddle and his son, 12 year old Baden Biddle.

While driving down I-80 in San Pablo, they were hit by Fred Lowe. He was drunk. His license had already been suspended from a prior drunk driving offense. The family's car crossed the median and flipped. Everyone inside, except Jared who was driving, was killed.

Shannon De Valois used to date Jared and through a veil of tears described the sadness she felt for what happened. "My thoughts are with his family, everyone in town is really devastated."
"Words can't describe the sadness," says principal of Vintage High School, Mike Pearson.

The devastation was felt, perhaps deepest in the sports community at Vintage High School where Daryl was a beloved coach. Neal tells ABC7 Daryl had a special connection with all his students.

"He had a nickname for every kid he coached. It stuck with them for years."

A community's hearts are with the surviving Horn family members - mom Denise, big sister Greta and Jared, a star baseball player at Cal.

The family released a statement Monday night on behalf of the Horn and Biddle families, saying, "These man were dedicated to youth sports and mentoring children. Through the years they have had tremendous impact on the lives of young boys and girls that their communities will benefit from for generations."

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Monday, November 27, 2017 06:34PM

SAN PABLO, Calif. (KGO) --

A family is in mourning after four of its members were killed in a hit-and-run crash on I-80 in San Pablo on Saturday night.

Relatives Daryl Horn, 50, and Joseph Horn, 14, both of Napa, and Troy Biddle, 52, and Baden Biddle, 13, both of Bainbridge Island in Washington, died in the crash.

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A baseball player at UC Berkeley survived a deadly crash on Interstate 80 in San Pablo on Saturday, but four members of his family were killed, officials announced Monday.

Jared Horn of Napa was driving along I-80 at the San Pablo Dam Road exit when the multi-vehicle crash, which is being investigated as a hit-and-run, occurred.

Daryl Horn, 50, and Joseph Horn, 14, both of Napa, and Troy Biddle, 52, and Baden Biddle, 12, both of Bainbridge Island in Washington, died in the crash, according to the Contra Costa County coroner's office.

In a statement the Horn and Biddle families said they are focusing on supporting each other and ask for privacy during this time. (Full statement attached at the bottom of this article)

Troy and Baden Biddle were killed in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 80 in San Pablo.
Photo credit: Biddle Family

Mike Neu, the head coach of the Golden Bears' baseball squad, wrote in a statement that the team "cannot image what Jared is going through right now" and offered thoughts and prayers to him and his family.

"Jared is a respected and beloved member of our team as well as an incredible student-athlete, teammate and friend," Neu wrote in the statement. "We will give him any and all support that we can as he goes through this unthinkably difficult time."

The suspected driver who caused the deadly wreck has been identified as Fred Lowe of Sacramento, officials said. Lowe has been taken into custody.

"A witness identified the driver, saw him hit the vehicle and leave," CHP Officer Matthew Hammer said. "He relayed the info the Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Department."

Lowe, 47, was driving on a suspended license due to a prior DUI conviction, the CHP said. In addition, he was involved in a second hit-and-run shortly after the fatal crash when he smashed into a parked vehicle near San Pablo Dam Road, right off the El Portal onramp, not far from the original crash site.

Five cars were involved in the original wreck, according to the CHP. The car Horn was driving overturned. He was taken to the hospital and later released, but four passengers in the car he was in were pronounced dead at the scene.

Troy and Baden Biddle were killed in a multi-vehicle crash on Interstate 80 in San Pablo.
Photo credit: Biddle Family

Six others, including a child, were also injured in the crash involving five vehicles, according to the CHP.

The freeway was shut down for about seven hours overnight, the CHP said.

The CHP said it typically sees a spike in impaired drivers around the holidays. The department has been operating under what’s called a maximum enforcement period. That means more officers on the highways across the Bay Area, with a goal of keeping people safe.

"In our area, we have a lot of really bad collisions, a lot of fatalities, and so we are really stopping and slowing people down to prevent those collisions," CHP Officer Charlotte Brannon said.

Another issue is drivers and passengers not wearing seatbelts. The CHP said of 27 fatalities a year ago in its jurisdiction, 14 were not wearing seatbelts.

The Biddle and Horn families provided the following statement Monday:

UC Berkeley Baseball Player Survives San Pablo Crash That Killed 4 People: Sources

A baseball player at UC Berkeley survived a deadly crash on Interstate 80 in San Pablo on Saturday, but four other people in the car he was in were killed, sources tell NBC Bay Area. Pete Suratos reports.

(Published Monday, Nov. 27, 2017)

"The Horn and Biddle families appreciate the tremendous outpouring of support from their communities. Troy Biddle and Daryl Horn were beloved fathers, husbands, sons, brothers, friends and coaches. Baden Biddle (13) and Joe Horn (14) were beautiful, caring and innocent boys whose loss will be felt by all those who knew them. The families are focusing on supporting each other and ask for privacy during this time. Amanda and Denise would appreciate if the message and memory of those lost were of their love of family and community. These men were dedicated to youth sports and mentoring children. Through the years they have had a tremendous impact on the lives of young boys and girls that their communities will benefit from for generations. The dads and their boys spent their last day doing what they loved, playing in an annual father son basketball tournament. It was an amazing day filled with pride and laughter. The surviving families consist of Amanda Horn (Biddle) and their daughter Devon Biddle (10), Denise Horn their daughter Greta and son Jared. The families have a deep love for each other and will use their strength to manage this difficult time."

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SAN PABLO, CA — A Sacramento man suspected of driving under the influence and causing a catastrophic freeway crash Saturday that killed four people has been arrested, the California Highway Patrol reported.

Fred Lowe, 47, left the crash scene at Interstate 80 and was apprehended after Contra Costa County Sheriff’s Office deputies spotted a blue Mercedes reported to be involved in the crash, CHP spokesman Officer Matther Hamer said. Details of the arrest and where deputies spotted the Mercedes were not immediately available Sunday.

Lowe was arrested on suspicion of felony vehicular manslaughter, felony hit-and-run and felony DUI, Hamer said. The crash also hospitalized six people, but the CHP on Sunday did not have information on the extent of their injuries or conditions.

According to the CHP, the blue Mercedes that Lowe is suspected of driving collided with a white Nissan sedan while going eastbound on I-80 near the San Pablo Dam Road exit around 8:10 p.m. The Nissan lost control and went over the center divide and into the westbound lanes, where it overturned.

All four passengers in the Nissan died at the scene, Hamer said. Authorities have not identified them.

The Nissan’s driver went by ambulance to a hospital, along with the driver of a Honda and two people each from a Mazda SUV and a Lincoln SUV. Those three cars were going west on I-80 and all crashed as the Nissan came over the center divide, the CHP reported.

The blue Mercedes also is believed to have been involved in another hit-and-run earlier on I-80, Hamer said. Details of that incident were not available immediately.

The CHP closed all westbound lanes on I-80 and diverted traffic, an unwelcome development for commuters anytime on a Saturday but especially so on the first Saturday of the holiday shopping season. They diverted traffic onto El Portal Drive, and side streets quickly clogged.

One lane on eastbound I-80 also closed down for more than an hour after the crash. All westbound lanes were opened around 4 a.m. Sunday.

Lowe remained at the County Jail in Martinez on Sunday in lieu of $1.15 million bail.

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DUI arrest made in California multi-car crash that killed 4

November 26, 2017

By The Associated Press

SAN PABLO, Calif.

Authorities arrested a Northern California man they say was behind a multi-car pileup that killed four people and injured six others.

Fred Lowe of Sacramento was arrested on suspicion of felony vehicular manslaughter, felony hit-and-run and felony DUI, California Highway Patrol spokesman Officer Matthew Hamer told the East Bay Times .

Hamer said Lowe, 47, left the crash scene at Interstate 80 in the San Francisco area's east bay and was apprehended after Contra Costa County Sheriff's deputies spotted a blue Mercedes reported to be involved in the crash.

The blue Mercedes Lowe is suspected of driving collided with a white Nissan sedan Saturday night, causing the Nissan to flip over and crash into three vehicles traveling in the opposite direction.

All four passengers in the Nissan died at the scene. The driver was hospitalized.

Details of the arrest were not available and CHP authorities did not have information on the six people who were hospitalized.

Lowe was at the Martinez Detention Facility on Sunday in lieu of $1.15 million bail.

It was not immediately known if he had an attorney, and attempts by The Associated Press to reach family and associates for comment were unsuccessful.

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SAN PABLO, CA (BCN)

Four persons died tonight in a five-vehicle collision on westbound Interstate Highway 80 in San Pablo, California Highway Patrol officials said.

Five more people were transported to the hospital with injuries, according to CHP.

The collision was reported at 8:11 p.m. at Highway 80 at the San Pablo Dam Road off-ramp.

A Sig-alert was issued at 9:22 p.m. because all westbound lanes of Highway 80 are blocked near the collision.

CHP officials do not have an estimate for when the westbound lanes will reopen. One eastbound lane is also closed.