Investigation continues into fatal crash at Harrison

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The investigation into a fatal accident in Harrison is ongoing. According to the Harrison Daily Times, search warrants were still being executed as of Friday following the death of 27-year-old Elijah Howard of North Little Rock.

Harrison Police Chief Paul Woodruff says Howard traveling northbound on U.S. Highway 65 Monday morning as he was transporting a 15-year-old juvenile, secured in the back seat and in custody with handcuffs and belly chains, from a facility in Fordyce to another facility in Illinois. The vehicle came around a curve approaching Salmon Lane when he veered into the path of a tractor/trailer rig.

Howard was pronounced dead at the scene, and the teen was transported by helicopter to Mercy Hospital in Springfield. In an interview at the hospital, the teen said Howard stopped at a truck stop south of Bellefonte where he had a cigarette, and the teen had a pastry. The juvenile said he was dozing in the back seat at the time of the crash and didn’t know what happened, but Howard had been texting on his phone that morning.

Chief Woodruff says the vehicle belonged to Howard, but the transport company through which he was contracted installed a dash cam. The company agreed to allow police to download data from the recorder, but the storage disc was full and wasn’t recording at the time of the crash.

Chief Woodruff adds Howard was also shown to have a criminal record.

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