Heartbroken father speaks out after teenage son dies in crash

LIVERMORE, Calif. - The father of a 15-year-old boy who was killed in a crash of a pickup truck full of Livermore High School students said Thursday that the deadly collision was the result of a crime.

"He died in a tragedy. It was not an accident. This was something that was totally preventable," said Steve Diemert, the father of Hunter Diemert.

Hunter was killed and five other Livermore High students were hurt in the August 2021 crash.

"Kid driving was driving at a very high rate of speed," Diemert said.

The 17-year-old boy driving the Chevy pickup truck lost control on curvy Del Valle Road near Mines Road in Livermore. The truck plunged down an embankment and rolled several times. Hunter was thrown from the truck and died.

"That was my only son, that was my life, that was my everything," Diemert said.

Diemert said his heartache is still fresh.

"It"s been over a year, and nothing's changed. If anything, it's gotten worse. We wake up and there's not a day that goes by that I'm emotionally crying, breaking down, three to four times a day," he said.

"Yeah it's a life sentence, because this will never change. We have to live with this for the rest of our life, because some kid wants to drive very recklessly," he said.

Hunter was a varsity wrestler at school.

"This is his wrestling picture from Livermore High School," said Diemert, gazing at a portrait of his son. "In 10th grade he became a varsity wrestler, he got his letter."

Hunter also loved to fish. And he was already working in construction, following in his father's footsteps.

"For his age, he was an old soul," Diemert said.

His father showed KTVU the 1985 Chevy C-10 in the garage that Hunter helped pay for.

"Three weeks later, he's gone," he said.

Diemert says he's angry that the driver was speeding on a curvy road while heading up to what's known as "Top of the world."

"That's not a friend. Friends don't do that to friends, you know. And parents, parents need to parent," he said.

The driver was 17 at the time and shouldn’t have been driving late at night or with any passengers under 20. He pleaded guilty to vehicular manslaughter in Alameda County Juvenile Court. He's since turned 18 and will be sentenced later this month. 

"Whatever it is, it isn't gonna be enough," Diemert said.