A driver was charged with murder and other counts after the suspect allegedly ran over a 56-year-old woman, who died of her injuries, and wounded two others in Hempstead two months ago, authorities said.
Shania Buchanan, 22, pleaded not guilty to charges of second-degree murder, assault, reckless endangerment and reckless driving. Judge Jerald Carter ordered her held without bail.
“The defendant is charged with barreling into a group of pedestrians while driving an SUV, leaving one bystander dead and two other victims with severe, life-altering injuries,” said Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas.
Prosecutors said Buchanan was driving her Nissan Pathfinder when she heard about an altercation involving a family member, sped toward her relative’s Linden Avenue home, where a crowd had gathered, and struck three people with her SUV at 5 p.m. April 20.
Of the two surviving victims, one’s spine was fractured and the other suffered a broken femur, authorities said.
Buchanan surrendered to Nassau County police Wednesday, prosecutors said. She is due back in court July 11. If convicted, she faces up to 25 years to life in prison.
