Ross Police arrested a woman in connection with a fatal pedestrian hit-and-run that occurred Jan. 13 on Babcock Boulevard.
Erin Lee Petroski, 39, of Ross, is charged with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence (DUI), involuntary manslaughter, accidents involving death, DUI, driving at an unsafe speed, and careless driving, Deputy Chief Brian Kohlhepp said Monday.
Petroski turned in herself Monday afternoon at Allegheny County Jail, where she is awaiting arraignment, Kohlhepp said.
At 10:53 p.m. Jan. 13, Ross police responded to the 3000 block of Babcock Boulevard, just south of the entrance to Sheetz, for a report of a person lying alongside the roadway, according to a criminal complaint obtained by the Tribune-Review. That female later was identified as Elizabeth Griser.
Several bystanders performed CPR on Griser, who had “a large laceration on her head,” the criminal complaint said. Officers checked Griser and discovered that she was not breathing and did not have a pulse.
Griser was taken to Allegheny General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
Police checked traffic and surveillance cameras, which spotted a white 2010 Toyota SUV heading south on Babcock Boulevard — less than a quarter-mile from where Griser’s body was found — at 10:40 p.m., according to the criminal complaint. The SUV had a passenger-side headlight missing and appeared to have front passenger-side damage.
The vehicle was traced to Petroski. Ross police went to Petroski’s house where, after she confirmed she had been in a crash, police asked her if she intended to stop.
“I did stop,” said Petrosi, according to the complaint. “I’m not going to say much more. I understand why you’re here.”
William Stewart, Petroski’s boyfriend, told police Petroski was at Hal’s Bar and Grill on Babcock Boulevard that night, the criminal complaint said. When Stewart arrived at home, he found Petroski standing in the driveway, hysterical, stating “that she hit something.”
Petroski did not tell Stewart what she had hit, according to the complaint. Blood results showed Petroski’s blood-alcohol level that night was .11%, which is above the legal limit.
Several pieces of white plastic bumper parts were recovered near the victim’s body that were “a fracture match” for the front passenger side bumper area of Petroski’s Toyota, according to the complaint.
A Ross officer digitally recorded an image of the airbag control module using a port under the driver’s side dashboard, the criminal complaint said. Data shows that at the time of the crash, when it was snowing in a posted 35 mph zone, the vehicle’s speed was recorded as 44.7 mph. Data also recorded that the brakes were not applied at any time prior to the collision.
Traffic cameras captured Griser, the victim, walking from the bus stop on McKnight Road towards a Babcock Boulevard business, according to the complaint. Video also showed Griser lying alongside the roadway unattended for nearly 11 minutes before the first bystanders arrived to render aid.
