Two jailed in traffic accident

Friday, Aug. 14, 1998 | 11:21 a.m.

A Henderson building inspector and another man remain jailed today after a violent traffic accident Tuesday that killed a 43-year-old mother and her son.

Paul Auzenne, 36, who has worked at City Hall since 1995, is being held on two counts of felony driving under the influence causing death, according to a Henderson Detention Center spokeswoman. His bail is set at $500,000.

Auzenne and Jeffrey Roussin, 32, were apparently drag racing in a Henderson neighborhood -- one in a large Dodge truck and the other in a sport utility vehicle -- when Auzenne's truck slammed head-on into a Toyota sedan, Henderson officials say.

Mary Lou Young and her 10-year-old son were killed instantly in the 8:40 p.m. accident, said Vicki Taylor, assistant to the Henderson city manager.

"This is such a senseless tragedy," Taylor said. "Just think of yourself driving home with your kid and never see it coming. In a residential area, you just don't expect it."

Auzenne and Roussin refused breathalizer tests, prompting police to take a forced blood draw.

Roussin was arrested on suspicion of two counts of involuntary manslaughter, according to the jail spokeswoman. He is being held in lieu of $400,000 bail.

Taylor said it has not been determined how fast the two men were traveling when the Dodge hit the sedan on Sausalito Drive just north of Racetrack Road. But, she said, the crash site was gruesome and emergency personnel had to undergo mandatory counseling.

Taylor said a decision on Auzenne's employment status at the city has not been made.