DATE: Monday, April 14, 1997                TAG: 9704140053

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B2   EDITION: FINAL 

TYPE: Briefs 

                                            LENGTH:   50 lines

COURTS & CRIMES

A Norfolk man was killed and five others injured Saturday night when a tractor-trailer car carrier jack-knifed and hit two vehicles that had stopped on the side of Interstate 264.

The accident occurred around 8:45 p.m., said Tammy Van Dame, a state police spokeswoman.

Initially, Rodney L. Beasley, 21, was involved in a relatively minor accident that left the 1994 Mazda 929 he was driving partially in the left lane of the interstate.

Several friends who were following him in two cars stopped and got out of their cars to help. Suddenly, the tractor-trailer, driven by Mickey L. Taylor, 48, of Virginia Beach, went out of control as it approached the accident scene. It jack-knifed, striking Beasley's car and a 1993 Nissan van.

Five people were taken to Sentara Norfolk General Hospital, two with serious injuries. Two other people sought medical care on their own at another hospital. The names of the injured were not released.

The accident closed the eastbound lanes of the interstate for six hours with debris spread across all lanes. The car carrier was empty.

In addition to a state police accident reconstruction team, a motor carrier team was brought in to check the truck, owned by Allied System Ltd. of Atlanta, for mechanical difficulties. None was found.

Taylor was charged with reckless driving and the accident remains under investigation.

Another accident occurred shortly before midnight in the westbound lanes of I-264 as drivers slowed to look at the accident scene in the eastbound lanes.

There was no indication of what caused the initial accident or if any charges resulted from it.

Portsmouth

Woman's body found; man charged with murder

Police have charged a 37-year-old man with the shooting death of a woman whose body was found early Sunday in Churchland.

Police have not released the names of either the victim or the suspect, pending notification of the woman's family.

Police were called to the 4100 block of Kalona Road just after 4 a.m. They found the woman's body on an adjacent street, near her home.

The suspect is charged with murder and using a gun while committing a felony. The victim was in her early 20s, police said. KEYWORDS: MURDER ACCIDENT TRAFFIC

Send Suggestions or Comments to webmaster@scholar.lib.vt.edu