A not guilty plea was entered for a Mountain Home woman charged in connection with the hit-and-run death of then 27-year-old William “Billy” Herrmann in mid-October last year during a session of Baxter County Circuit Court/Criminal Division July 7.
Sam Pasthing, the lawyer representing 63-year-old Sarah Alsup, entered the plea for his client.
According to police reports, Herrmann was attempting to cross U.S. Highway 62B at a point between Wendy’s and City Nails just after 9 p.m. October 18 last year when he was struck by Alsup’s 2000 GMC Sierra pickup truck and thrown into the east end of the parking lot of City Nails.
Despite efforts to resuscitate him, Herrmann was pronounced dead at the scene.
The victim was employed at Wendy’s.
Alsup did not stop, according to police reports. She continued traveling east until she pulled into the parking lot of White Oak Station at 1124 Highway 62B East. She left that business and drove to a Chinese restaurant in the East Center shopping complex, a short distance from the convenience store.
When she left the restaurant parking lot she turned to the west and is reported to have driven past the accident site where officers and first responders were still actively working the incident and went to her residence.
Witnesses provided a partial license number for the suspect vehicle and officers were able to contact Alsup several hours after the incident.
According to the police report, a witness saw Alsup’s truck as it passed by the site heading west after visiting the convenience store and the Chinese restaurant. The witness told officers it was the vehicle that had struck the victim.
Alsup is reported to have said she believed a deer had “darted” in front of her vehicle.
Under Arkansas law, a pedestrian is supposed to cross a highway at a designated crosswalk. If the pedestrian is crossing at a point other than a designated crosswalk, the pedestrian must yield to oncoming traffic.
Court documents do not indicate if Alsup made any effort to check her vehicle for damages due to what she said she believed was a collision with a deer in the vicinity of Wendy’s and City Nail.
One other major question is why when driving past the accident site and seeing police and first responders on scene did Alsup not stop to see what had happened since it was at the same spot where she said the deer had been hit?
Leaving the scene of an accident in which a person was killed can be charged as a Class B or Class D felony depending on the circumstances.
The major elements to be proven are that the defendant was driving the vehicle, failed to stop, did not remain at the scene or provide information to law enforcement and did not render aid to the victim.
The maximum punishment for a person convicted of a Class B Felony is a prison term ranging from 5-20 years a fine of up to $15,000. The punishment range for a Class D Felony is no more than six years in prison, and a fine of up to $10,000.
The Class B felony is charged if it is alleged the driver knowingly or recklessly failed to comply with the law.
Both charges can also result in the revocation of the person’s driver’s license.
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