Driver involved in fatal accident | Local news

The driver involved in a fatal accident at the corner of Falls and Sampson streets on March 21 is charged with two traffic violations.

Laresha Elizabeth Perkins, 24, of the city’s east side, was ticketed for failure to stop and careless driving on May 23. The accident resulted in the death of 60-year-old Randall Shropshire of the Croton area.

New Castle police Cpl. Chris Fabian said the citations were recommended by District Attorney Joshua Lamancusa after he and police reviewed surveillance footage of the crash.

Fabian said Perkins was found to be responsible for the accident. She pleaded not guilty to all charges and is awaiting a summary trial in District Court, court records show.

The Lawrence County Coroner determined that the accident was the immediate cause of Shropshire’s death. An autopsy determined that he died from multiple blunt force injuries to the head, neck and chest. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to police, Shropshire was driving a red pickup truck west on Falls Street in the city around noon when a southbound white sedan driven by Perkins crossed into his path at the intersection with Sampson Street and nearly collided head-on with his truck.

The truck landed on a steep embankment outside Westview Terrace. Perkins’ car sustained severe front-end damage. She was taken by ambulance to a hospital with unknown injuries.

The truck also suffered significant damage and both vehicles were towed away.

Fabian said Shropshire was not wearing a seatbelt, but Perkins was.

Perkins is presumed innocent until proven guilty or convicted in a court of law.