No criminal charges in fatal Narragansett accident
6:19 PM Mon, Aug 25, 2008 | Permalink
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A Westerly woman who struck and killed a University of Rhode Island student in Narragansett this past April has been cited for speeding and failing to stay in her travel lane, but she will not face criminal charges, investigators said today. Gayle Cherenzia, of 1 Bayview Drive, Westerly, was traveling more than 50 mph in a zone posted for 30 just moments before she struck Mary Ellen Claire Offer, a 19-year-old art major from Woodcliff Lake, N.J. Cherenzia, 53, had also veered into the breakdown lane where Offer and her 20-year-old URI roommate, Holly Maganzini, were walking. But the infractions do not rise to the standard needed for criminal charges -- "reckless disregard" or "heedless indifference" for the safety of others, and that means there will be no charges, said Michael J. Healey, spokesman for the attorney general's office. According to the Narragansett police and the Attorney General's Office, Cherenzia was following her sister as she headed south on Boston Neck Road at about 1:20 a.m. on Sunday, April 6. She had just passed some pedestrians on the northbound side of the road when she slammed on her breaks, trying to avoid Offer and Maganzini, who were walking south in the southbound breakdown lane. The impact caused extensive damage to Cherenzia's 2004 Toyota Corolla, crumpling the right side of the hood, shattering the right side of the window and denting the front right roof pillar. Offer was later pronounced dead at South County Hospital. Maganzini suffered leg injuries but attended a memorial for Offer two weeks later. "Having reviewed this case thoroughly, it is clear to us that this incident was indeed a tragic accident, but not a crime," Healey said. -- Journal staff writer Randal Edgar Narragansett Police Chief Joseph T. Little Jr. said the investigation showed that that Cherenzia had consumed some wine earlier that evening but not an amount that would be a factor in the accident. The police also determined that Cherenzia, by slamming on the breaks, slowed the car to about 31 to 38 mph when the accident occurred, Healey said. Offer and Maganzini had parked at the Overlook Professional Plaza on Boston Neck Road and were walking back to their car from a party when the accident occurred. Little said the town is looking at possible charges against the host or hosts of the party, which held was at 763 Boston Neck Road, according to Healey and Det. Lt. William McGovern. Charges under the state's social host law are an option, but charges under a town ordinance are more likely because the social host law is geared more toward cases in which parents are present, Little said. 
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cars have 'brakes', not 'breaks'.
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Gayle Cherenzia drove her car in an illegal manner - speeding, and in the breakdown lane - and the result was death. And yet she will face no charges whatsoever - she will not even have her license suspended, or be forced to re-take the state driving test.
This is a story we've heard before in Rhode Island: motorists driving recklessly with death resulting to other motorists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. So what does it take in Rhode Island for a reckless car driver to have their license taken away? Or to be fined? Or to be given a prison sentence? Anything to account for the results of their crime?
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