Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The government called 3 witnesses during Day 1 of Folasa Galeai’s jury trial, and one of them was the wife of the deceased — also the only eyewitness — who told jurors that at the time of the accident, the defendant’s vehicle was flying towards theirs.

Galea’i, who is out on a $2,500 surety bond, is charged with vehicular homicide, a class D felony, punishable by imprisonment of up to 5 years, a fine of up to $5,000 or both. The charge stems from a fatal June 9, 2017 accident, whereby a man in his 60s died after allegedly being struck by the vehicle driven by Galea'i.

A six-member jury — 5 females and one male — was selected this past Monday.

Assistant Public Defender Rob McNeill represents Galea’i, while prosecuting is Assistant Attorney General Doug Lowe.

On the witness stand, DPS Officer Mareko Fale, one of the cops who responded to the accident, was asked if he ever interviewed Galea’i on the day of the accident.

Mareko said no.

McNeill asked Fale if he ever got a chance to speak to Galea'i regarding the case.

Again, Mareko said no.

McNeill said the government should call to the stand the lead investigator, because he was the one who interviewed his client.

(Samoa News points out that the lead investigator is former police officer Lomu Mosese, who is facing charges in connection with a case where an inmate escaped from the Territorial Correctional Facility (TCF) in August 2018, which allegedly led to a shooting in Leone. Mosese’s case is still pending in High Court).

The government’s second witness was the wife of the victim, who walked jurors through what happened on the day in question.

Mrs. Lopesi testified that there were four of them inside their white truck — her husband (the late Lameko Lopesi), herself, and two of their grandchildren.

They were on their way to town when her husband stopped their vehicle at the end of the road from the house, got out, and checked the oil cap. Afterwards, he closed the hood and made his way back into the truck.

It was at that time the witness said she saw an orange pick-up truck heading in their direction at high speed. She described the orange vehicle as "flying" towards them.

The witness said she turned to her side and grabbed her two grandkids, who were sitting close to her. But the orange truck struck her husband, throwing him about 40 feet away from where he was standing.

She told jurors that after her husband was hit, she went over to where he was lying, and she noticed that “he was gone”.

She said Galea'i walked up to her and apologized for what happened, and she turned to him and said, “You killed my husband”.

The third witness who testified was a mechanic, who told jurors that there was nothing wrong with Galeai's vehicle's brakes during the time of the accident.

When the government rested, the defense called one witness to the stand: Galea'i himself, who testified that he was on his way to the Tax Office to drop off some documents.

He could not recall the exact time the accident occurred, but said the last thing he remembers is the time he passed the intersection at the LBJ in Faga’alu.

“Do you recall hitting Lameko Lopesi?” McNeill asked.

Galea’i responded, “No, I don’t”.

“Do you recall hitting a white pick-up in Fagaalu?” NcNeill continued.

Galea’i replied, “No, I don’t”.

“Do you recall what happened on that day?” McNeill asked.

Galea'i answered, “I don’t recall anything. I only remember hitting the rock fence at the SPED in Fagaalu and that is when I woke up.”

He continued, “I was in a state of shock because I didn’t believe what had happened at that time. I got out of my vehicle and found out that someone was lying on the other side of the road. I saw a man lying on the pavement and I went over to help.”

McNeill asked Galea’i to tell the jury what caused the accident.

“I don’t know," Galea'i responded. "I figured, I fell asleep.”

The trial resumes at 9 am today.