VISTA — A man who struck and killed another man with a vehicle during an argument in Carlsbad was sentenced Tuesday to 22 years in state prison.
Robert Cameron Owens, 43, was convicted by a Vista jury of accelerating his vehicle toward Stephen Smith and fatally striking him on Rue Des Chateaux around 3:30 a.m. June 28, 2024.
Jurors acquitted Owens of murder but found him guilty of voluntary manslaughter. The jury also found Owens to have a prior strike conviction.
A prosecution trial brief stated that Owens and his fiancée met the victim and two other men at a local bar and, after a night of drinking, drove to the beach.
While at the beach, Owens and Smith “tested each other” by swimming in the ocean, which led to an argument.
When they got back to Owens’ vehicle, Owens continued shouting at Smith, who was standing in the middle of the street, according to the brief.
Smith said “something to the effect of ‘You’re not gonna do (expletive),'” at which point Owens accelerated the vehicle and struck the victim, sending him flying into a boulder, prosecutors wrote.
One witness then heard Owens say, “Get up. Get up. I didn’t even hit you that hard. You’re (expletive) faking it. Get up,” the brief states.
Owens then drove off. After his arrest, he told investigators that Smith pulled out a knife and threatened to kill him, while also admitting it was possible he “bumped” Smith. Owens denied hitting the victim on purpose, according to the brief.
