[0] ROAD RAGE MOTORIST FOUND.

Byline: Lisa Van Proyen Daily News Staff Writer

The driver of a green minivan involved in a Sylmar freeway dispute that led to the deaths of two women came forward Thursday but investigators declined to file charges against him after an interview, CHP officials said.

Pierre Gaucher, 47, of Northridge denied to authorities Thursday that he participated in any road rage exchange, said California Highway Patrol Officer Doug Sweeney. Gaucher said his van was bumped by a Mercury Cougar as he was exiting the freeway and pulled over to stop but that the other driver sped away and turned back onto the freeway.

However, CHP investigators believe the road dispute on the Golden State Freeway began before the drivers reached the Roxford Street off-ramp.

``We know that there was some kind of confrontation before the off-ramp,'' Sweeney said.

The red Cougar headed the wrong way back onto the freeway, where it was involved in a massive crash that killed the driver, Delfina Morales, 42, of San Fernando, and her 26-year-old daughter, Maria Gonzalez, of Pacoima.

The accident occurred at 7:27 a.m. Wednesday on the northbound side of the Golden State Freeway at Roxford.

On Thursday, the CHP spokesman repeated the story Gaucher told authorities: ``He feels her hit one time. He pulls over to the shoulder. She pulls beside him and accelerates and hits a big puddle and throws a bunch of dirt and mud onto his van.''

But witnesses told officers that Morales and Gaucher exchanged gestures, honked horns and flashed headlights before she followed Gaucher's Plymouth van down the off-ramp and bumped him a couple of times. She then turned and headed the wrong way back onto the freeway, sideswiped a Honda Accord and slammed into a truck.

``Witnesses said she was determined. Her face looked like she was on a mission,'' Sweeney said.

Outside the mobile home of Delfina Morales on Thursday, red-eyed, somber friends and family gathered to mourn the loss of their loved ones.

Morales lived in a tiny, working-class mobile-home park located in an industrial section of San Fernando and Gonzalez lived in Pacoima. Family members declined to talk to reporters.

Gaucher called CHP officials at 9 a.m. Thursday after seeing the incident on the 9 p.m. TV news Wednesday and talking it over with co-workers Thursday morning, Sweeney said.

Sweeney said Gaucher reported that after the Cougar drove away, he pulled into a neighboring Denny's restaurant parking lot to survey damage to his vehicle. He also said he did not see the few scuff marks on his van that the CHP noted Thursday.

While surveying his van, he noticed a commotion on the freeway, but did not connect it to his ordeal, Sweeney said.

Contacted at his Northridge home Thursday evening, Gaucher refused to comment.

``There's really not anything to say,'' said Gaucher.

Sweeney said Gaucher had been exiting at Roxford Street on his way to work in Sylmar where he is a supervisor.

Sweeney emphasized that Gaucher is only an involved party at this time and not a suspect. However, there is a possibility charges could be filed at a later date as the investigation continues, he said.

Neither Gaucher nor the two women involved in the collision have any criminal convictions or accidents on their record, Sweeney said.

Officials ask that any potential witnesses call the CHP office at [phone].

Daily News Staff Writers Stacy Brown, Peter Hartlaub and Yvette Cabrera contributed to this report.

CAPTION(S):

Photo

PHOTO (color) Maria Gonzalez, 26, was killed in a crash Wednesday along with her mother, Delfina Morales, 42.