Posted on 02/10/2007 11:14:17 PM PST by stainlessbanner
LANDIS - Blood alcohol tests will help a prosecutor decide whether to pursue second-degree murder charges against a man whose SUV hit a car driven by a pregnant Salisbury woman, authorities said Thursday.
The wreck killed Leeanna Newman, 20, who was eight months pregnant, and her unborn baby. Newman's 1-year-old daughter, Mallory, a passenger in the car, was not injured in the Tuesday wreck.
The red SUV was driven by Rigo Verto Guillen Martinez, authorities said.
Tests on the fetus will help determine whether Martinez, 33, will face a charge for the unborn baby, said Capt. Steve McNeely, the Landis police officer investigating the wreck.
McNeely said he talked about possible charges Thursday with Rowan County District Attorney William Kenerly.
A blood sample from Martinez has been sent to a Raleigh lab. If a blood alcohol test indicates Martinez was legally intoxicated, Kenerly could charge him with second-degree murder, McNeely said. A conviction would carry a sentence of 8 to 32 years in prison.
If the test shows Martinez was not intoxicated, Kenerly could charge Martinez with felony death by vehicle, which can carry a 15-month to six-year prison term.
A Kannapolis police officer reported Martinez was driving erratically Tuesday. He was following Martinez when Martinez crashed into Newman's car.
Witnesses have given conflicting reports, but some said Martinez was driving as fast as 80 mph near downtown Landis and the Kannapolis officer, David Horne, was right behind him.
Kannapolis police are examining whether Horne followed department policy on pursuing a suspect. Officers aren't supposed to chase a suspect unless the suspect committed a serious misdemeanor or a felony, Kannapolis Maj. Woody Chavis said.
Landis police are waiting for Kannapolis officers to give them a description of the Kannapolis officer's pursuit and a reconstruction of the crime scene before putting together a police report Kenerly can use to decide on charges.
Martinez was listed in fair condition Thursday at Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte.
McNeely said Martinez broke several bones in his legs and needs more surgery before he can be discharged and arrested.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are also still investigating Martinez' residency status.
Martinez had a Mexico driver's license when he was taken to the hospital. It's not valid in North Carolina, Landis police said. Martinez, who was living in Kannapolis near the Landis town limits, does not have an N.C. license, police said.
This happened two minutes from my house.
Needless to say, people around here are NOT happy about it.
I am very sorry to read this ...Prayers being said for Leeanna Newman and her baby, and her family. Very sad story. It just seems all too often we are reading about illegals getting into car accidents and fatal ones at that. Shaking my head here again...... This is just getting to be too much...
Prayers for the Newmans and Codespots.
May they rest in peace.
"Kannapolis police are examining whether Horne followed department policy on pursuing a suspect. Officers aren't supposed to chase a suspect unless the suspect committed a serious misdemeanor or a felony, Kannapolis Maj. Woody Chavis said."
The America haters and other lunatic leftists will key in on this. Just blame the cop and let him take the heat. It's clearly his fault......(sarc)
I would immediately say he was an illegal invader, however, the illegal invader apologists (read: liberal RINO pacifist cowards) around here would just accuse me of racism.
And there you have the down-side of the "no chase" policy. The officer had to wait until the suspect committed a felony. Well, he finally did - murder, and a preventable one when all is said and done. And in the home of The Intimidator, too! I wonder if the rule was put in effect because the locals were tired of chasing Dale and Dale Jr.?
If the test shows Martinez was not intoxicated, Kenerly could charge Martinez with felony death by vehicle, which can carry a 15-month to six-year prison term.
Ummm I have a question - How is killing a person with a car while sober LESS of a crime than killing a person (actually two) with a car while drunk?
Either way - the result is two dead people -and a horribly traumatized little girl who now no longer has her mother.
Kannapolis police are examining whether Horne followed department policy on pursuing a suspect. Officers aren't supposed to chase a suspect unless the suspect committed a serious misdemeanor or a felony, Kannapolis Maj. Woody Chavis said.
So - driving erratically, striking at least two parked vehicles, and speeding up to 80mph in a 35mph zone is not enough?
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents are also still investigating Martinez' residency status.
Martinez had a Mexico driver's license when he was taken to the hospital. It's not valid in North Carolina, Landis police said. Martinez, who was living in Kannapolis near the Landis town limits, does not have an N.C. license, police said. Which means that that there is likely zero insurance...
I hope all U-KNOW-WHAT hits the fan if/when it is discovered (assuming the press doesn't cover it up) that this guy is an illegal alien.
But at the time, the legal status isn't what is important - it is the fact that this should be two cases of MURDER. I have never understood there being a differentiation between different types of homicide - it's kind of like tacking on hate-crime penalties - is the woman and her baby any less dead if alcohol was not involved? Is their death any less wrong or horrible? If he was drunk - who decided to drive drunk? It wasn't the woman and her unborn baby. IF he was not drunk - then who is to say that he wasn't trying to take someone with him?
There are WAY too many different "levels" of murder charges - in my opinion, there are only be three types of homicide - Homicide, justifiable(self defense, which generally should never even go to court), and accidental. For it to be classified as accidental, it should have to be proven that there was no way to avoid it - say a major mechanical failure, and other real accidents. Otherwise - murder is murder. And being drunk, "crazy", or mad is not an excuse, nor a mitigating circumstance.
ping
Something similar happened in front of where I work about a month ago. Some guy in a little red honda (all accounst say he was hispanic) tried to pass someone in a no passing zone. He got run over by a fully loaded dump truck. We can't find out what happened to him. They are keeping it under wraps since New Haven, CT is a sanctuary city for illegals.
Everyone should write the DA and insist that 2nd degree murder charges be taken out
Maybe not racism. Bigotry, definitely.
Every time I see a story like this I know, even before getting to that part of the story, that the driver was an illegal. Chalk up two more people killed by one of Bush's hardworking, family values guests.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.