A mental competency trial of Jan. 19, 2024 was confirmed Dec. 14 for the driver suspected of killing unsheltered people during a rainstorm in 2021 near City College.

Craig Martin Voss, now 74, has congestive heart failure, and has not been able to attend any court hearing in a few years, according to his attorney, Kaitlyn McCarthy.

In addition to his physical problems, McCarthy says he doesn’t have the mental ability to stand trial.

On Dec. 14, both she and Deputy District Attorney Cally Bright appeared virtually on camera in their offices before San Diego Superior Court Judge Michael Groch.

They confirmed the Jan. 19 date and the transfer of medical records from the defense to the prosecutor. Groch said there was a notation from the court clerk’s office that records from Scripps Hospital were left. Bright said she would make copies and return them to the clerk’s office.

Groch set a Jan. 4 status conference. Voss has never had a preliminary hearing because he was too ill to come to court. His illness of congestive heart failure was disclosed in court in February 2023.

Voss has pleaded not guilty to three counts of vehicular manslaughter in the March 15, 2021 deaths of Rodney Diffendal, 40, Randy Ferris, 65, and Walter Jones, 61. He is charged with numerous other counts from injuring seven other people who survived.

They were all struck at 9 a.m. while on a sidewalk on B Street in a tunnel west of Park Boulevard. Because it was raining, there were approximately 50 people, gathered in tents and blankets on the sidewalk.

Voss, of South Park, is under house arrest and is prohibited from driving. His wife is believed to be taking care of him.