Man accused of stabbing and killing his co-trucker along Interstate 5. Here’s his defense
The man accused of killing his co-worker along Interstate 5 near Newman in August claims he acted in self-defense when hours of arguing turned physical.
The men were drivers for a Southern California trucking company and were heading south on I-5 on their last day of a six-day haul together, according to testimony during a preliminary hearing in Stanislaus Superior Court on Monday.
San Bernardino resident Erin Michael Anderson, 39, was found stabbed to death along the southbound I-5 on-ramp to Stuhr Road just before 9 a.m. Aug. 26. His co-driver, 66-year-old Keith Alexander Forrest, was arrested about 16 miles away at Love’s Travel Stop in Santa Nella around 10 a.m.
Forrest was charged with murder and an enhancement for using a knife.
According to testimony at the hearing, Forrest walked out of the truck stop and up to law enforcement officers who’d located the big rig the co-workers had been driving. He said, “Yeah, it’s me you’re looking for.”
Law enforcement knew to look for the big rig because California Highway Patrol Officer Marco Rivera had been in contact with Forrest and Anderson during a traffic stop just before the stabbing.
According to testimony, Anderson and Forrest had been arguing for over an hour about the way Forrest had parked at a gas station earlier that morning.
They still were arguing when Rivera pulled Anderson over for speeding at Fink Road around 8:25 a.m.
Rivera testified that he offered to help them separate by giving one of them a ride to the nearest truck stop, but they both declined because they said they wouldn’t get paid if they didn’t finish the trip together.
Before leaving the scene, Rivera saw Forrest outside of the truck and his items being thrown out, presumably by Anderson. Rivera again offered Forrest a ride but he declined, River testified. Both men eventually got back in the truck and headed south.
Rivera left not long after. He drove five miles south to the next exit, Stuhr Road, where he saw several bystanders gathered along the on-ramp. He went to the scene and found Anderson on the ground bleeding from his chest, according to testimony.
He recognized Anderson from the traffic stop and alerted other officers to be on the lookout for the big rig, which officers found in Santa Nella.
Anderson died of his injuries at the scene. A forensic pathologist testified that Anderson died from blood loss as a result of two stab wounds to his chest. He also had superficial stab wounds to his left leg and hand.
Following his arrest, Forrest told CHP Detective Octavio Martinez that Anderson had become very angry after he got the speeding ticket and tried to force him out of the big rig at the Stuhr Road on-ramp.
Anderson reached over Forrest and opened the passenger door, so Forrest reached over him and pulled the keys out of the ignition, according to testimony from Martinez.
Martinez testified that Forrest told him Anderson then tried to push him out of the vehicle but he maintained his position, so Anderson started punching him in the side of the head.
Forrest told Martinez that is when he pulled out a pocket knife and stabbed Anderson on the left side of his body.
“Eventually, they came out of the truck fighting and they ended up on the ground,” Martinez testified. He said Forrest told him he landed on his back and Anderson landed on top of him, so he stabbed him again a few more times.
Forrest got back in the truck and drove away, last seeing Anderson crawling toward the back of the big rig, Martinez testified.
Martinez testified that during the interview, Forrest seemed relaxed and very matter-of-fact. After Martinez informed him that Anderson had not survived, “He looked up and said something and just sounded upset,” according to testimony.
Asked if he was afraid of Anderson, Forrest talked about their 27-year age difference and said “he wouldn’t be able to take him on,” Martinez testified.
Detectives recovered two knives associated with Forrest, as well as clothing with blood on it. He also had an injury to his thumb with fresh blood on it.
No weapons associated with Anderson were located and Forrest never said Anderson had one, according to testimony.
Martinez also interviewed co-workers of Anderson’s and Forrest’s.
One employee told Martinez she spoke to management about Anderson and she refused to work with him due to his “immature behavior.”
Another told Martinez that Anderson tormented him and tried to throw him out of the big rig on one of their hauls together. He said Anderson made people uncomfortable, according to testimony.
At the conclusion of the testimony, Forrest’s attorney, Chief Deputy Public Defender Reed Wagner, said, “I think the only logical conclusion of what happened here is self-defense.”
Judge Linda McFadden said there was enough evidence to hold Forrest to answer to the murder charge, citing inconsistencies between the physical evidence and statements made by Forrest.
The burden of proof for the prosecution at a preliminary hearing is much lower than at trial, when prosecutors must prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Forrest is scheduled to return to court for an arraignment Oct. 24.
This story was originally published October 12, 2022 at 11:35 AM.
