Rutland Herald
June 28, 2016
By Kathleen Phalen Tomaselli
STAFF WRITER
Lashawn Jones, the tractor-trailer driver charged in a 2015 triple fatality on Route 4 in Killingtonpleaded innocent Monday in Rutland criminal court. Jones, 41, of Alpharetta, Ga., was charged with three counts of driving an 18-wheel tractor-trailer in a grossly negligent manner during hazardous operating conditions.
If convicted on all counts, Jones could be sentenced to up to 45 years in jail.
“This is tragic. It was a tragic accident. Anytime there is a loss of life, it is tragic, and Miss Jones is taking this very hard,” Jones’ attorney Matthew Hart said Monday afternoon. “The allegations are that she was driving too fast for conditions, but anyone who has driven that pass knows how fast the conditions change. It changes instantly. She wasn’t speeding, she was well rested, she did everything she should have, but the weather unfortunately changed.”
On Dec. 29, 2015, the day of the crash, an early morning storm brought snow, sleet, rain and wind to the area, and the National Weather Service had issued a winter weather advisory. Route 4 near Shady Knoll Road was mostly slush covered with icy patches, according to Vermont State Police.
“Something needs to be done about that pass, we see it every year,” Hart said.
At about 2:15 p.m., Jones allegedly crossed the double yellow line on Route 4, and the 2016 International that she was driving collided with a 2009 Cadillac Escalade.
The Cadillac passengers included five members of the Malarczyk family of Hastings-on-Hudson, N.Y., and a family friend from Poland.
Husband and wife Ryszard Malarczyk, 51, and Anita Malarczyk, 50, along with their friend, Jaroslaw Karczewski, 51, were pronounced dead at the scene.
The Malarczyks’ three children who were riding in the back — Natalie Malarczyk, 16, Peter Malarczyk, 20, and Monica Malarczyk, 22 — were severely injured, but survived the crash.
In the affidavit, State Police said the impact of the crash was so great that the Cadillac Escalade was crushed.
One witness, Lori Stiles, told police that she sat with Jones in Stiles’ truck, while her husband, a Killington firefighter, assisted on scene. Stiles said in a sworn statement that she let Jones use her cellphone to make some calls.
“She was upset, and while in between calls, she said, ‘I don’t know why they didn’t see me, I had my hazards on,’” Stiles said, adding that Jones said she was driving up the mountain, but had shifted down in anticipation of the other side. “She told me how she was in fear of the drop off, off the side of the road, so she had moved toward the middle of the road,” Stiles said.
Investigator Lt. Barbara Zonay said Jones’ comments to Stiles were troubling.
“Jones could not have been in the lowest gear going down the mountain, as she would have been traveling less than a few miles per hour. It is also troubling that Jones states she chose to move toward the center of the road, in essence expecting ongoing traffic to avoid her, even though she was clearly in the wrong lane,” Zonay said in her report. “Jones’ statement lends itself to the opinion that Jones chose to endanger other motorists by proceeding into an oncoming traffic lane ... if Jones was in that much fear of traversing the roadway, the burden was on her to stop traveling and wait out the storm for a few hours.”
Based on witness statements and gouge marks in the westbound lanes, police said that Jones crossed the painted solid yellow center line and entered the westbound lane, striking the Cadillac head-on.
Police tested Jones for alcohol or other drugs, but according to lab results, she did not have any intoxicating substances in her system.
Additionally, the investigation revealed that Jones was not talking on her cellphone and not texting at the time of the collision.
The tractor-trailer Jones was driving was registered to Roehl Transport Inc. of Marshfield, Wis., State Police said. After repeated attempts, the company did not return calls.
Jones was released on the condition she not drive a commercial vehicle.
Her next hearing is scheduled for July 18 in Rutland criminal court.
kathleen.phalentomaselli @rutlandherald.com
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