Honesdale woman arrested in relation to fatal motorcycle crash. Police say she was DUI
Wayne County District Attorney A.G. Howell announced the arrest of the individual allegedly responsible for the death of Gabriel Wagner. On August 11, Wagner was riding his motorcycle on Route 670 in Honesdale when he was struck and killed by oncoming traffic.
Monday afternoon, police charged Jade Stauffer, 32 of Honesdale, with 16 driving violations including homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence of a controlled substance. Sgt. Keith Columbo of Honesdale PD states in his affidavit of probable cause her blood tested positive for amphetamines and cannabinoids. Police await further analysis from the crime lab.
In Pennsylvania, people with any detectable amount in their system of marijuana or its metabolites — even ones that do not cause a high — are legally considered to be driving under the influence. The law does not include any exceptions for medical cannabis patients.
Read about the crash here:Honesdale fatal motorcycle crash victim identified
Of interest:In PA, medical marijuana patients are always considered DUI — even if they're not impaired
According to Columbo's affidavit, information downloaded from Stauffer's grey Kia Forte Airbag Control Module shows she was allegedly driving at nearly 85 miles per hour just before the crash and had slowed to a little over 71 miles per hour at the time of impact.
Columbo's affidavit states Stauffer told him shortly after the crash, "she was heading home from getting a mouse to feed her pet and pills from town when she observed a deer getting ready to jump over the guide rail into her lane. As a result Stauffer stated that she swerved into the oncoming lane and when she did she observed the motorcycle but had no time to swerve back into her lane before hitting the motorcycle head on."
When Columbo asked how fast she was going, Stauffer's alleged answer was "too fast to negotiate the turn in the road."
The crash took place a little before 5 p.m. on August 11. At 10:30 that night, Columbo received a tip from a motorist who said he had been driving behind the car which struck Wagner moments before the accident.
Learn moreRecreational pot legal in NJ: Here's what northeast PA residents need to know
According to driver, Paul Meagher, Jr., he was traveling behind a grey Kia sedan which was tailgating a blue SUV in front of it. He told Columbo "the operator of the sedan kept swerving partially into the oncoming lane of travel several times as if trying to pass the slower moving blue SUV. Eventually the individual operating the grey KIA sedan passed the slower moving blue SUV on a double yellow line and took off at a high rate of speed."
The driver told police he lost sight of the sedan as it sped around a corner. "When he [the driver] got to the right curve just prior to the crash scene," states Columbo's affidavit, "he observed a large cloud of dust and the grey sedan crashed into a telephone pole."
Stauffer was arraigned on September 12 before Magisterial District Judge Kay Bates. As of the time of writing, she was awaiting a preliminary hearing.
This article originally appeared on Tri-County Independent: Honesdale Police charge woman with homicide for fatal DUI crash
