Abington Man To Stand Trial For Striking Teen Girl Outside High School
NORRISTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- The driver of the car that hit a 14-year-old girl as she crossed the street by Abington High School will stand trial on charges he was speeding and may have been distracted at the time of the crash.
Thirty-one-year-old James Clark will stand trial on charges including aggravated assault with a vehicle and recklessly endangering another person. Prosecutor Stew Ryan says the investigation shows Clark was going at least 46 miles-per-hour in a 25 miles-per-hour zone when he hit the girl as she crossed Highland Avenue at Canterbury Road.
"And that he appeared to be distracted, and as a result of that struck this little girl who suffered very severe injuries," Ryan said. "Based on our assessment of those factors and the law, we determined criminal charges were appropriate."
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For purposes of the preliminary hearing, Clark did not challenge the allegations laid out in charging documents.
"He's extremely regretful that this whole thing happened in any capacity," said Clark's attorney, Bridget Weidenburner, "but he does look forward to the right to review the Commonwealth's entire case and formal discovery and present his side of what happened in this case."
The girl continues to recover from serious leg and hip injuries.