A South Paris woman has been charged in connection with a November crash that killed a 13-year-old Lewiston boy as he walked to school.
Laurie Young, 54, was charged Wednesday with a motor vehicle violation resulting in death, a civil charge, after police concluded an accident reconstruction and cellphone analysis and consulted with the Androscoggin County District Attorney’s Office, police said Thursday.
Jayden Cho-Sargent was crossing Main Street on Nov. 3 when he was struck by the pickup truck Young was driving. Jayden, who was about a block from home and on his way to Lewiston Middle School, died at the scene.
Young was driving outbound on Main Street and failed to see the boy in the crosswalk until he was right in front of the truck, Lewiston Police Lt. Mark Cornelio said in November. She quickly applied the brakes, but the boy was dragged more than a car length, police said. Young was too distraught to call 911, so a passer-by notified emergency responders. Young agreed to have blood drawn for an alcohol and drug test.
During a vigil following his death, Jayden was remembered by teachers and friends as a good, funny kid who was popular with his eighth-grade classmates. Principal Jake Langlais said Jayden was “always smiling” and recalled him as “a good boy doing the things he was supposed to do.”
Young faces a fine of up to $5,000 and a license suspension of 14 days to four years.
Thursday evening, Jayden’s mother, Kellie Foley, issued a statement through a law firm she retained, saying she was disappointed with the decision to charge Young only with a civil offense.
“Our hope was there would be more accountability through the criminal justice system,” Foley said in the statement.
The statement denied that Jayden had been wearing dark clothing, had a cell phone or was walking in violation of traffic laws at the time.
“He was more than halfway through the crosswalk when he was hit. He was over 5 feet tall and easily visible. There are simply no excuses for a driver who did not stop,” the statement said. “Jayden didn’t do anything wrong. He was simply walking to school – something he had done many times. For anyone to blame him is shameful.
“Losing Jayden has broken our hearts. For those who knew and loved him, every day is a struggle. We would give anything for one more conversation, one more laugh, one more hug. The only thing we can do is honor Jayden and make sure he is never forgotten.”
The law firm Berman & Simmons said it would represent Cho-Sargent’s family in any potential civil action, but no lawsuits have yet been filed.
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