Falls woman sentenced to 10 years in prison for running over a group of people in her SUV
Jul. 22—LOCKPORT — A Falls woman, convicted of running people over with an SUV, has been sentenced to a decade in state prison.
Niagara County Court Judge Caroline Wojtaszek handed down the sentence to Shawnquilla N. Armstrong, 32, during a sentencing hearing on Thursday.
Armstrong pleaded guilty to two counts of attempted first-degree assault and was sentenced to serve five years behind bars for each count. Wojtaszek ordered that the sentences should run consecutively, for a total of 10 years in prison.
Falls police were called to the 1400 block of 22nd Street at Pierce Avenue at about 6:45 p.m. on Sept. 17. When the officers arrived at the scene, they found a 16-year-old male and a 52-year-old woman suffering from injuries they said they received when they were struck by an SUV. The two victims were taken to the Erie County Medical Center in Buffalo where they were treated for non-life-threatening injuries.
Two other people were also struck by the SUV but were not medically treated.
Investigators said six people had been involved in an argument, and were gathered on the sidewalk in the 1400 block of 22nd Street, when Armstrong got into a white 2011 Chevy Tahoe, turned around and intentionally drove up onto the sidewalk and into the group. Witnesses told police that Armstrong then drove away down Pierce Avenue.
Two days later she surrendered to Falls Police Criminal Investigation Division (CID) detectives and was charged with two counts of first-degree assault and one count of second-degree assault.
"This defendant intentionally drove her vehicle up onto a sidewalk and into a group of people," Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman said. "The tire of her SUV came within inches of running over one individual's head. It was by sheer luck that nobody was killed."
Seaman praised the work of Falls Police investigators and assistant District Attorneys Carrington Crossley and Nichole Sands.
