Lesser Charges Against Nail Polish Driver Dropped

Lake County prosecutors have thrown out a traffic violation against Lora Hunt, the woman who struck and killed motorcyclist Anita Zaffke (pictured right) with her car while allegedly painting her nails. But that doesn't mean Ms. Hunt is free. Instead, prosecutors are examining more serious criminal charges against her. Michael Waller, Lake County state’s attorney, said, “We’re investigating to determine whether more serious charges can be filed." The reason she's not facing the traffic violation is a simple one: prosecutors worried that if she had pleaded guilty to the violation, they might not have been able to pursue more serious charges due to the double jeopardy statute of facing charges for the same crime twice. Just as they had last month, though, prosecutors are having problems with the vagueness of state law as pertaining to "distracted drivers." Waller said that new charges should be filed against Hunt in the next two to three weeks. [Sun-Times]
By Marcus Gilmer in News on June 9, 2009 9:20 AM