Hit-And-Run Driver To Stand Trial 14 Months After Accident
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – The family of a bicyclist killed by a hit-and-run driver is finally getting justice, nearly 14 months after the accident.
After more than a year, 60-year-old William Edenfield will stand trial in a hit-and-run accident that killed 23-year-old bicyclist Taylor Lee Banks.
"Things went very, very well," the victim's mother, Beth Ann Banks, said. "Our family is proud right now. We're getting justice for Taylor Lee Banks, what we've been fighting for all along."
Banks was riding his bike on Route 51 near Aliquippa on October 31st, 2014, when he was allegedly struck by a red pickup truck. He died at the scene from blunt force trauma to the head and neck.
"One thing I would like to say on behalf of my client, condolences go to the family," defense attorney Charles Bowers said. "This is a tragedy for all involved."
Bowers tried unsuccessfully to get the judge to dismiss the homicide by vehicle charge.
"The fact that there were no eyewitnesses, nothing indicating how this accident happened, other than it was simply an accident," he said.
Police say Edenfield was worried that he hit someone, so he pulled into a turn around just off Route 51, planning to go back to the crash scene. By then, a Monaca police officer noticed his wrecked vehicle and when he gave him a sobriety test, he failed.
Edenfield admitted he had just left a nearby bar where he drank three shots of tequila and seven or eight beers.
He also faces DUI and other charges.
The family wondered if they would get justice.
"We've had devastation, moments that we didn't want to get up and go out the door, while this person has been walking the streets for 15, 16 months," Beth Ann said. "We're finally starting on the road to get justice for Taylor."
Edenfield's attorney says his client was never on the run and always cooperated with police. Taylor Lee Banks' family is praising police for finally giving them some answers.
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