Jury begins deliberations in trial of Charlene Casey, accused of causing crash that killed 2-year-old Colin McGrath
BOSTON -- The jury in the trial of Charlene Casey deliberated Tuesday for several hours, but left for the day without reaching a verdict.
Casey has been charged with motor vehicle homicide after she allegedly caused the chain-reaction crash that killed two-year-old Colin McGrath in South Boston in 2018.
Jurors began deliberations Tuesday afternoon, but left at 4 p.m. for the day. Deliberations are scheduled to resume Wednesday at 9 a.m.
Earlier in the day, the defense presented a witness to the crash who seemed to contradict the prosecution's argument.
Thirty-year-old Kevin Bui told jurors he was driving down L Street in South Boston on the afternoon of the crash. He said he noticed the Prius, driven by Casey, trying to come out from East 6th Street so he stopped to let her by.
"I stopped, and we both made eye contact, I waved her and she acknowledged it, she did the little hand gesture, and then she started nudging out little by little. She didn't just go out, just nudged out a little," he said.
According to Bui, he didn't see any traffic coming in the other direction but then heard the sound of an engine and its RPMs going up.
"Two seconds after hearing it, all of a sudden the van just came out of nowhere and hit her in the front side front," Bui said. "It had to have been going at least 20 above the mile limit."
During cross-examination, prosecutors referenced surveillance images while asking Bui who hit who. "Is it fair to say the van is already in the intersection of L Street and E. 6th when that white Toyota appears to accelerate by pressing on the gas?" they said.
"Yes, I'd say that's fair to say," Bui responded.
After hearing Bui's testimony, jurors boarded a bus along with attorneys, the judge, and court staff, to see the scene for themselves.
In a surprise move last week, Colin's mother Kerri McGrath took the stand in the trial.
