To Ron Downing, it feels like justice denied.

The driver who caused a head-on crash in December 2002 that left Downing’s 6-week-old baby without her mother was acquitted Thursday of involuntary manslaughter.

“I literally felt today like I did the day of the accident: that somebody just took my entire life away,” said Downing, husband of 31-year-old Tisha Downing, who was killed in the crash.

He is now raising their daughter by himself.

After a two-day bench trial, Douglas County District Judge Robert Fairchild found Thursday that 20-year-old Charley R. Davis’ attempt to pass three vehicles uphill in a no-passing zone wasn’t “reckless,” an element required to prove the manslaughter charge. Instead, Fairchild found Davis guilty of the lesser charge of misdemeanor vehicular homicide, which means he wasn’t exercising the proper caution.

Tisha Downing was on her way home from the grocery store Dec. 4, 2002, when her van collided with Davis’ pickup truck at the crest of a hill on U.S. Highway 40 about a mile west of Lawrence. The Downings’ infant daughter, Francesca, was in the van at the time but wasn’t seriously injured.

Davis was moving from Topeka to his parents’ home near Lone Star and had borrowed his father’s pickup to move some items. He testified that he thought he could safely pass the group of vehicles but panicked when he realized he wouldn’t make it before the top of the hill.

Francesca, now 15 months old, could be heard crying in the courtroom as Fairchild read his verdict. Ron Downing looked at the ground and shook his head when he heard Davis was acquitted of the more serious charge.

“His intent was passing all three of those cars, so how that cannot be reckless, I don’t know,” Ron Downing said afterward, holding Francesca as she chewed on a reporter’s microphone.

Francesca Frankie Downing, 15 months, hides her eyes as her father, Ron, plays with her on her bed. Tisha Downing, Frankie's mother and Ron's wife, died in December 2002 in a car accident on U.S. Highway 40 when Charley R. Davis tried to pass three vehicles in a no-passing zone. Ron Downing was disappointed Thursday when David was acquitted of involuntary manslaughter in Tisha Downing's death.

After moving in for several months with his parents and sister, Ron Downing is now living alone with Francesca in Tonganoxie.

Downing said Francesca, known as “Frankie,” had been sleeping through the night since she was 2 months old and seemed to understand his needs.

“Obviously, it’s not what we would choose, but we do the best we can, and we love each other more than anything,” he said.

Davis, a farm-implements store employee who’s working on finishing his Lawrence High School diploma, will appear April 13 for sentencing. He faces up to a year in the Douglas County Jail.

“I think the judge fairly considered the evidence,” said defense attorney Patrick Nichols. “Kids make mistakes, and sometimes the mistakes are big ones. He’s prepared to take responsibility for what he did and hopes that they can go on with their lives and that he can go on with his.”

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