The driver of a car that slid into a parked tractor-trailer truck on I-95 south, near the Route 1 entrance ramp Dec. 12, has been charged with vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of an accident and
by Lea Kahn, Packet Media Group
The driver of a car that slid into a parked tractor-trailer truck on I-95 south, near the Route 1 entrance ramp Dec. 12, has been charged with vehicular homicide, leaving the scene of an accident and driving while intoxicated, according to the New Jersey State Police.
Luis Delcid-Cardona, 19, of Hamilton Township, was charged in the 1:09 a.m. accident that killed two Hamilton Township women and a Princeton man who were passengers in the 2001 Volkswagen he was driving, the New Jersey State Police said in a press release.
He is being held on $1 million bail at the Mercer County Corrections Center. A bail reconsideration is scheduled for Monday in Mercer County State Superior Court.
Killed in the accident were Hamilton Township residents Nicole Rodrigues, 20, and Samantha Belliveau, 18, and Jonathan Rivas, 19, of Princeton. The two women were sitting in the rear seat and Mr. Rivas was sitting in the front passenger seat, said Sgt. First Class Gregory Williams.
The accident occurred when Mr. Delcid-Cardona lost control of the car, Sgt. Williams said. The car was traveling in the center lane and the driver failed to negotiate a curve in the road. The car began to spin clockwise, striking the curb that divides I-95 travel lanes from the acceleration lane from the Route 1 entrance ramp onto I-95, he said.
The car hit the curb and went into the acceleration lane, where it slid into the rear of the tractor-trailer truck parked on the shoulder, Sgt. Williams said. Ms. Belliveau, who was sitting in the left rear passenger seat, was ejected from the car. Ms. Rodrigues, who was sitting in the right rear passenger seat, was partially ejected. The two women were pronounced dead at the scene.
Mr. Rivas, who was sitting in the front passenger seat, was extricated from the car by Lawrence Township volunteer firefighters and taken to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, where he died later that day.
Mr. Delcid-Cardona fled the scene, but was apprehended at a house in Lawrence by police.
Additional charges are possible, according to the New Jersey State Police.