TUPELO – When a second Pontotoc County Grand Jury did not indict a motorist for hitting and killing a girl who just stepped off a school bus, many residents complained vocally, saying the driver should be charged criminally.
District Attorney John Weddle said both the grand juries faced a tough task when hearing the case of North Pontotoc Elementary student Amiya Braxton.
“This was a difficult case,” Weddle said. “I know they struggled with it, based on the questions they asked.
“When you hear about it, the first thought is (the motorist) needs to pay. I completely understand that. That’s human nature. But when you start looking at the law and how it applies, it becomes a difficult issue.”
Criminally, the case boils down to intent – did the driver intend to pass the school bus or did she intentionally strike the child? Neither grand jury found intent, so neither indicted the driver on felony charges.
Braxton, 7, had just gotten off a North Pontotoc school bus on Oct. 4, 2016 and was standing in her own driveway when she was hit by an SUV driven by Karen Michelle Carpenter of Saltillo. Carpenter was following the northbound school bus on Highway 9 and failed to stop when the bus stopped. She swerved to the right, into a ditch, and struck the child.
There was no evidence Carpenter was texting or using her phone at the time. She willingly gave blood samples and the toxicology reports came back clean. Neither the accident reconstructionist nor the “black box” in the SUV were able to pinpoint how fast Carpenter was going just before the wreck.
The evidence was first presented to a grand jury in September 2017. When another witness came forward with new testimony, the case was reheard by a new grand jury last week.
“We felt both times the grand jury should look at both culpable negligence manslaughter and Nathan’s Law, which deals with injuries caused by passing a school bus,” Weddle said.
Under Nathan’s Law (Mississippi Code 63-3-615), if a child is injured by someone overtaking a school bus, the driver can be charged with aggravated assault. Both manslaughter and aggravated assault carry a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
When considering the evidence, a grand jury has to determine if the action was intentional or willful before they can indict someone for a felony.
“The big issue with respect to the Amiya case, is that there is no proof she intended to go around the bus with the intent of passing the bus,” Weddle said. “Nathan’s Law is subject to interpretation. Is it a strict liability or do you have to prove intent?”
There is also the question of charging someone with aggravated assault in a death case. By definition, aggravated assault is the willful causing of serious bodily injury. In most cases, if the victim dies, the charge is upgraded to murder or manslaughter.
When considering culpable negligence manslaughter, the grand jury had to decide whether the actions were careless or reckless. In a legal sense, reckless means it was a willful act, that there was some level of intention.
“Manslaughter is a reckless act that shows indifference to human life,” Weddle said. “The grand jury had to decide if there was a level of willfulness and this was criminal negligence or if this was civil negligence.”
Every case is different, and the evidence doesn’t always fall neatly into the legal definition of a particular criminal charge.
“We presented the facts and the laws, and let the grand jury make up their own mind,” Weddle said. “And in both cases, the grand juries chose not to indict on either of the charges.”
Unless some new evidence is brought forward, Weddle considers the case closed.
Braxton’s parents, Charles and Andrea Braxton, disagree and say they are still looking into other options to pursue criminal charges against Carpenter. In a joint press release Monday, the parents say they could ask Attorney General Jim Hood to intervene or they could present the results of a private investigation to a circuit judge and ask for a special prosecutor.
If they fail to get felony charges against Carpenter, the Braxtons said they could ask the Pontotoc County Sheriff’s Office to file misdemeanor charges, which carry a sentence of up to a year in jail.
That could be difficult, if not impossible. Weddle said law enforcement cannot sign an affidavit for a misdemeanor crime unless they see it with their eyes. There are exceptions to that rule, including a certified reconstructionist showing excessive speed. Since Carpenter left the paved roadway and drove onto grass, there is no way to accurately estimate her speed to determine if it was reckless.
“The law is set up to prosecute the guilty, but it is also there to protect suspect’s rights,” Weddle said.
Though it has been 16 months since Braxton was killed, Carpenter has never been charged criminally in this case. While the grand juries declined to indict Carpenter of any criminal wrongdoing, she could still be held liable in civil court. The family can still file a wrongful death lawsuit against Carpenter.
someone kill that cac devil, life is prison would be too generous for that c*nt
