THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, July 29, 1994 TAG: 9407290561
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B5 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY MIKE MATHER, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Short : 38 lines
A 16-year-old passenger who survived a car crash that killed two fellow Cox High School students has been charged with two counts of involuntary manslaughter because she contributed to the accident, police said.
The April 13 crash on Shore Drive took the lives of Marianne Olivieri, 15, of the 200 block of 43rd St., and Laine N. Schroeder, 14, of the 200 block of 56th St. Police said the car was traveling at an ``extremely high speed.''
The Nissan Sentra driven by a 17-year-old student went out of control and smashed into a stand of trees near Fort Story. The driver pleaded guilty this week to two counts of involuntary manslaughter.
The names of both the driver and the surviving passenger were withheld because of their ages.
Police said the 16-year-old, who was in the front seat, is being charged in the deaths ``due to her interfering with the safe operation of the motor vehicle,'' police spokesman Mike Carey said.
Another law-enforcement officer said the driver and passenger were apparently wrestling with the steering wheel just before the car veered out of control.
Carey said juvenile petitions were served Wednesday against the passenger. A juvenile petition is a version of an arrest warrant that is used to charge suspects who are younger than 18.
The passenger will have a hearing in Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
KEYWORDS: FATALITY ACCIDENT TRAFFIC MANSLAUGHTER
by CNB