Man Killed by Distracted Driver

A 51-year-old Santa Maria man named John Schrader was killed on 11/22 when the Honda he was driving was rear-ended at 55 mph. Schrader, reported CHP officers, was in Buellton at the Highway 154 and Edison Road stop sign and was hit from behind by a pickup truck towing a large flatbed trailer. The driver of the truck—Templeton resident Greg Baum—was reportedly not paying attention to the road and didn’t see the stop sign or Schrader’s car. Baum submitted to a blood test but was not immediately taken into custody, said a CHP spokesperson.