NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A woman has been locked up and charged with vehicular homicide by recklessness as well as contributing to the delinquency of a minor, after an exchange led to a deadly crash in Nashville last month March 5, 2021.
The initial reports may put the woman who sold the young man the car in even worse circumstances, as it’s believed that her selling of the vehicle may have been a ploy to help her get out of a hit and run accident, she may have caused just moments before.
To clarify the series of events that lead to this crash.
Witnesses say that 37-year-old Katrina Russell has been involved in a hit-and-run car accident and was feeling that accident. She had then met the young boy in an O’Reilly Auto Parts store on Nolensville Pike.
It was there that the exchange took place where the boy took ownership of the car from Russell for the aforementioned $80 and drove the vehicle away from the parking lot.
Witnesses say the vehicle was traveling at speeds in excess of 90 mph, even running through red lights, when it collided with the vehicle of 71-year-old David Cheatham. The collision would ultimately claim the man’s life and send the young man to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The 13-year-old boy, who has not been named, has been released though he is being charged in Juvenile Court with vehicular homicide by recklessness, driving without a license, and no proof of insurance.
Investigators are still trying to understand the events that led up to this accident that claimed the life of David Cheatham and set another young man’s life into complete disrepair.
“The charges stem from Russell’s admission that there was an exchange of money between her and the teen for the keys to her car, the Dodge Dart involved in the fatal crash,” the MNPD said in the release.
Russell escaped the scene initially and could not be located because she does not have a residence though the car that caused the accident is registered to her name.
She was later picked up in a separate incident when officers were called to a Helmwood Drive home when they were called to investigate people living in the home while under renovation without permission.
Russell apparently answered the door and told officers that she was helped friends paint the home. She was taken into custody and remain jailed under a $6,000 bond.
If you or someone you know was injured in an auto collision, speak with an experienced Nashville car accident lawyer and receive a free case evaluation today: (615) 590-3106.
About the Author
Michael Feiner
Michael A. Feiner is a partner in the Fort Lauderdale office of Steinger, Greene & Feiner. Since being admitted to the Florida Bar in 2001, Michael has devoted his practice to representing plaintiffs throughout Florida in various tort and strict liability cases and has successfully litigated cases against national insurance companies, large public companies, and governmental agencies, resulting in tens of millions of dollars for his clients.
He has handled all types of personal injury and wrongful death cases on behalf of plaintiffs, including automobile negligence, premises liability, medical malpractice, product liability, dog bites, and sexual harassment. Michael’s product liability case against Microsoft, as well as his representation of victims of sexual harassment and abuse by physicians, has garnered him important media attention at both the local and national levels.
Michael is an experienced trial lawyer and successfully argued an appeal to the Fourth District Court of Appeal. In the reported decision Ortlieb v. Butts, 849 So.2d 1165 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003), Michael persuaded the Fourth District Court of Appeal that a directed verdict on liability was appropriate where the defendant did not rebut the presumption of negligence of a rear driver in a rear-end collision.
Michael Feiner
Michael A. Feiner is a partner in the Fort Lauderdale office of Steinger, Greene & Feiner. Since being admitted to the Florida Bar in 2001, Michael has devoted his practice to representing plaintiffs throughout Florida in various tort and strict liability cases and has successfully litigated cases against national insurance companies, large public companies, and governmental agencies, resulting in tens of millions of dollars for his clients. He has handled all types of personal injury and wrongful death cases on behalf of plaintiffs, including automobile negligence, premises liability, medical malpractice, product liability, dog bites, and sexual harassment. Michael’s product liability case against Microsoft, as well as his representation of victims of sexual harassment and abuse by physicians, has garnered him important media attention at both the local and national levels. Michael is an experienced trial lawyer and successfully argued an appeal to the Fourth District Court of Appeal. In the reported decision Ortlieb v. Butts, 849 So.2d 1165 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003), Michael persuaded the Fourth District Court of Appeal that a directed verdict on liability was appropriate where the defendant did not rebut the presumption of negligence of a rear driver in a rear-end collision.