Current:Home > InvestFamily of West Virginia 13-year-old who was struck, killed by off-duty deputy demands jury trial -TrueNorth Finance Path
Family of West Virginia 13-year-old who was struck, killed by off-duty deputy demands jury trial
NovaQuant Quantitative Think Tank Center View
Date:2025-04-09 13:51:33
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — The family of a West Virginia 13-year-old who was struck and killed by an off-duty sheriff’s deputy with his marked cruiser last year has filed a civil suit in federal court against the former officer and other county officials.
Opal Slone, the mother of Jacqueline “Laney” Hudson, is requesting a jury trial for former Cabell County Sheriff’s Deputy Jeffrey Racer, accusing him of speeding when he struck her daughter in December 2022, among other allegations, according to the lawsuit filed Monday in the U.S. district court serving southern West Virginia.
A state police accident reconstruction expert who responded to the scene could not precisely determine how fast the cruiser was moving when it hit Hudson because its “black box” — which usually records that information — did not activate, according to a special prosecutor assigned to the case who cleared Racer in May of criminal charges.
State police analyzing skid marks and other factors estimated Racer’s speed at between 47 and 55 mph. The posted speed limit is 35 mph.
The suit alleges Racer didn’t have the authority to disregard the posted speed because he was not responding to an emergency call, fire alarm or an “actual or suspected violator of the law.”
“Defendant Racer breached his duty to operate his police cruiser in the same manner as a reasonably prudent law enforcement officer under the same or similar circumstances,” the suit reads.
As a result of his actions, Hudson’s family is “forced to endure and suffer, and continue to endure and suffer, extreme physical, mental, and emotional pain and suffering and pecuniary loss,” the suit says.
Racer, the Cabell County Sheriff’s Office, Sheriff Chuck Zerkle and the Cabell County Commission are all named as defendants. The Associated Press left a message with the sheriff’s office Wednesday seeking comment. Racer did not have a listed telephone number and could not be reached.
Racer was placed on administrative leave following Hudson’s death and resigned months later.
Special Prosecutor for Cabell County Mark Sorsaia determined in May that Hudson’s death was the “direct result” of her own erratic behavior while under the influence of alcohol and marijuana, which were identified in her system after an autopsy.
Hudson was killed on December 30, 2022 just after 10:30 p.m. in Huntington, where she was hanging out at an intersection with a group of teenagers.
Racer was driving his cruiser after hours because he was staying overnight at his girlfriend’s house and needed it for work in the morning, the prosecutor said.
Racer was driving through a green light at the intersection when Hudson and another teen ran into the roadway, Sorsaia said. He tried to stop, but was unable to avoid hitting Hudson. The other child was not injured. Racer stayed on the scene and called 911, according to the prosecutor.
In Slone’s suit, her attorney argues that Racer failed to render proper aid by not driving her half a mile to the emergency department at St. Mary’s Medical Center. West Virginia statute states that a driver involved in a crash resulting in injury to or death of any person shall render “reasonable assistance, including the carrying, or the making arrangements for the carrying,” of the individual to a medical facility.
Sorsaia said that 49 mph was the median speed in February when law enforcement conducted an hour-long radar survey of 63 vehicles passing through the intersection where Hudson died.
A video taken from Hudson’s phone by state police showed the teens running around in the street by the intersection prior to the crash, he said. Two sobriety tests found “no sign of impairment” in Racer’s case.
In a statement, Slone described her daughter as someone with an infectious smile who loved to sing and dance and “made everyone’s day better.”
“That’s how I remember my girl, singing to the tops of her lungs and dancing like nobody was watching. She laughed like she lived, loud and usually always happy,” Slone said. “She has so many who miss her more than words can say.”
veryGood! (6669)
Related
- John Galliano out at Maison Margiela, capping year of fashion designer musical chairs
- Putin and Lukashenko meet in St Petersburg to discuss ways to expand the Russia-Belarus alliance
- Joan Collins Reveals What Makes 5th Marriage Her Most Successful
- X curbs searches for Taylor Swift following viral sexually explicit AI images
- House passes bill to add 66 new federal judgeships, but prospects murky after Biden veto threat
- A Boston doctor goes to trial on a charge of lewd acts near a teen on a plane
- UK fines HSBC bank for not going far enough to protect deposits in case it collapsed
- Indonesian police arrest 3 Mexicans after a Turkish tourist is wounded in an armed robbery in Bali
- Could your smelly farts help science?
- LA Opera scraps planned world premiere of Mason Bates’ ‘Kavalier and Clay’ adaptation over finances
Ranking
- Newly elected West Virginia lawmaker arrested and accused of making terroristic threats
- Love streaming on Prime? Amazon will now force you to watch ads, unless you pay more
- New Mexico is automating how it shares info about arrest warrants
- Dan Campbell on Lions' failed fourth down conversions: 'I don't regret those decisions'
- Can Bill Belichick turn North Carolina into a winner? At 72, he's chasing one last high
- Are we overpaying for military equipment?
- Climate activists in Germany to abandon gluing themselves to streets, employ new tactics
- Priceless painting stolen by New Jersey mobsters in 1969 is found and returned to owner's 96-year-old son
Recommendation
Most popular books of the week: See what topped USA TODAY's bestselling books list
Houthis target U.S. destroyer in latest round of missile attacks; strike British merchant ship
Police investigating headlock assault on hijab-wearing girl at suburban Chicago middle school
Rise and shine: Japanese moon probe back to work after sun reaches its solar panels
Chuck Scarborough signs off: Hoda Kotb, Al Roker tribute legendary New York anchor
Do you you know where your Sriracha's peppers come from? Someone is secretly buying jalapeños
Georgia state trooper dies after hitting interstate embankment while trying to make traffic stop
Grief and mourning for 3 US soldiers killed in Jordan drone strike who were based in Georgia