Woman arrested in crash that killed 2 girls. DA issues warning about cell phone use
A woman authorities accuse of causing a Dec. 3 accident that killed two young girls was arrested Friday morning, the Earth County District Attorney said in a statement.
Alyssa Litwin, 33, faces two charges of manslaughter, one charge of aggravated assault, four charges of endangering a child and one charge of tampering with evidence, the district attorney said.
Litwin was driving north of Morgan Hill when she didn’t notice that Carrie Sackett, also 33, who was driving two daughters in a GMC Acadia SUV, was stopped to make a left turn on U.S. 281 near County Road 466, the Texas Department of Public Safety said.
She struck the back of the SUV with her Dodge truck, launching the SUV into oncoming traffic, authorities said.
A Chevrolet truck in the oncoming lane struck Sackett’s vehicle in the passenger side, killing the 5-year-old and 9-month-old girls, the DPS said.
Sackett was flown in critical condition to Harris Hospital in Fort Worth, while Litwin suffered minor injuries. The driver of the Chevrolet was also taken to hospital.
The phone was not being answered Friday afternoon at the Erath County district attorneys office and officials did not respond to an email with detailed question.
In the news release, Erath County district attorney Alan Nash said he usually doesn’t comment in detail on pending charges. But he stated, “It is important for the drivers of Erath County to be warned that local prosecutors and law enforcement view cell phone use that takes one’s eyes off the road, even for a few seconds, as reckless.”
Nash said the term “reckless” is important because the law says operating a vehicle in such a manner that causes death or bodily injury or puts a child at risk “is criminal and will be treated that way.
“We should all be chastened by this horrific, completely avoidable catastrophe for the Sackett family and put our cell phones away when we are driving,” Nash added.
This story was originally published December 14, 2018 at 1:48 PM with the headline "Woman arrested in crash that killed 2 girls. DA issues warning about cell phone use."
