EVERETT — An Everett teen is accused of driving recklessly before an October crash that killed a man along 112th Street SE.
The boy, who turns 18 next week, recently was charged with vehicular homicide, a felony. The newspaper is not naming him because he is being prosecuted in juvenile court.
On the afternoon of Oct. 22, he allegedly was eastbound in an Infiniti G37. Another vehicle, traveling behind him, had a high-resolution dashboard camera that was recording.
The Infiniti came to a stop at a red light at Seventh Avenue SE, according to the charges. At the same time, Roy Bennett, 89, was driving toward 112th from his neighborhood. Bennett’s Chevrolet Malibu was about 681 feet from the intersection.
When the light changed, the boy “accelerated hard,” prosecutors allege.
The speed limit in that stretch is 35 mph. The boy estimated his speed at five to seven miles faster. Detectives allege he was going up to 83 mph.
The impact knocked the Chevy 180 feet down the road. Bennett was taken to the hospital, where he died two days later. The boy, who had his learner’s permit, was unhurt, as was his brother who was a passenger.
The detective concluded that if the boy had been driving the speed limit, “the collision would not have occurred.”
Reporter Caitlin Tompkins contributed to this story.
Rikki King: 425-339-3449; rking@heraldnet.com; Twitter: @rikkiking.
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