PARIS, Maine — The driver in a January crash that killed two pleaded not guilty Tuesday to manslaughter and other charges associated with the crash.
Kristina Lowe, 19, of Oxford, is charged in the deaths of Rebecca Mason, 16, of West Paris and Logan Dam, 19, of Norway. Lowe faces two counts of manslaughter, two counts of operating under the influence and one count of leaving the scene of a motor vehicle crash resulting in death.
She pleaded not guilty to all five charges Tuesday morning in Oxford County Superior Court. Lowe was released on May 2 on $50,000 unsecured bail.
Police say Lowe was drinking and sending text messages while driving 75 miles per hour on Route 219 when she lost control of a 2002 Subaru car, slamming into a stand of trees. Dam and Mason were killed instantly in the one-car crash, and a third passenger, Jacob Skaff, 22, of Paris suffered minor injuries.
An affidavit said a blood test showed Lowe had detectable amounts of marijuana in her system and that she admitted to police she was driving and texting at the time of the crash.
Her attorney, James Howaniec, denies she was drunk or texting and said Lowe lost control when the car hit a patch of ice.
Lowe’s bail remains at $50,000 unsecured bond. She is barred from contact with the state’s witnesses in the case or with any members of the victims’ families.
her whole life (and 3 more lives) are completely ruined over a TEXT MESSAGE. is it worth it? Make an example of her. this cant happen again.
Don’t forget the speeding and being drunk part.
Did the other article mention alcohol or just “being under the influence?” This one says she had detectible amounts of marijuana in her system but that doesn’t necessary mean she had smoked near the time of the accident.
Originally when this happened I believe the article stated that she had left the party to pick up her friends after she had been drinking (quite a bit) that night. I may have read that in another local paper though. I also believe she failed a breathalyzer test.
And that comment that was removed: She killed people because she was irresponsible. Don’t be mad at us, be mad at her.
Thought you would find this of interest Kelly
“Driving & Drugs in Maine”
“Marijuana – It produces a dreamy state of mind and creates the illusion that your senses are sharper than ever. While it’s true that your attention becomes focused, you actually become preoccupied with unusual thoughts or visions, not the road. That “spaced out” feeling alters your sense of time and space, making it difficult to make quick decisions, judge distances and speed, and causes slow, disconnected
thoughts, poor memory and paranoia. Even hours after the effect is gone, this inability to deal with the unexpected lingers.”
“OUI Drug Law – Maine has trained police officers to detect the presence of drugs other than alcohol in impaired drivers. The Drug Evaluation and Classification Program provides the evidence needed to successfully prosecute drivers for operating under the influence. The presence of abused drugs or controlled substances in the system can be used as evidence of impairment.”
http://www.maine.gov/dps/bhs/impaired-driving/drugs.html
I understand how impairment from drugs and/or alcohol can both be considered “under the influence;” I was just asking if alcohol was ever specifically mentioned in the paper as it was mentioned in the original comment I replied to. (I thought it was but could not understand why it would not be mentioned here.) Also, if I recall correctly, I believe marijuana can stay in your system for about a month or so (depending on the amount consumed) and can still be detected; I don’t think “unexpected lingers” and the like would last that long.Still interesting posts though. ;)
Here is a link to the original BDN article about this accident ( http://bangor-launch.newspackstaging.com/2012/01/07/news/lewiston-auburn/alcohol-texting-behind-car-crash-that-killed-two-teens-in-west-paris-police-say/?ref=relatedBox ) and the first paragraph mentions “drinking and text messaging” as factors.
And depending on the type of test THC metabolites can be detected anywhere from a few days (blood testing) to 30 days or so (urine testing) to 90 days (hair testing). The amount of THC metabolites found in the body can give investigators an approximate time frame for last use which would be based on body weight, sex, etc…
Agreed on everything there except the hair testing – can’t any substance be detected as long as the hair isn’t cut? (Unless you’re talking about short-haired individuals that cut their hair in which the root would be gone by the 3-month cut-off. No pun intended.)
Follicle testing.
Got’cha. I’ve heard where they can test the hair as well, not just the follicle. Not sure if it’s as reliable or what they can pick up though. Thanks for the input anyway-do you think they could tell if she was smoking in a short time period like the last 12 hours before the accident? Just curious how precise they can get.
Yes it is very precise. And the hair that can be used is not just the hair on the top of your head.
Blood samples are routinely taken from the driver of a motor vehicle involved in an accident. That blood would then be tested for alcohol and drugs.
It would probably be too blatant or add insult to injury to say glad to be texting with you so I’ll just say thanks for some intelligent conversation & have a good night!
Considering that independant labs are not allowed to do unbiased test on cannabis, we will have to rely on our always honost Maine.GOV. How did they arrive at this conclusion? Did they have test subjects? How do I apply? Watch Super High Me some time. Good documentary. Unbiased.
“How did they arrive at this conclusion?”
Science or maybe Bill Nye the Science Guy I can never remember which one.
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“Did they have test subjects?”
Doubt it…they normally use controls.
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“How do I apply?”
Start here – http://www.maine.gov/bhr/state_jobs/index.htm
~~~~~
“Watch Super High Me some time. Good documentary.”
Let’s see a movie by a comedian about smoking marijuana for 30 days.
Here is what the critics said about “Super High Me” – “Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter thought that the documentary consisted of Benson merely “expanding a bit from his stand-up act to strained results”. Scheck wrote, “Super High Me mainly is an excuse for a series of comic riffs from its undeniably amusing subject who apparently is a favorite among the stoner crowd.”
Mark Rahner of The Seattle Times wrote, “Benson’s [stunt] isn’t as much of a revelation [as the one in Super Size Me], and it’s more amiable than funny….In the end, this is a weak advocacy film without much to interest anyone else.”
~~~~~
“Unbiased”
Not really.
Only the Federal Government, you know, the folks that fed us the lies about cannabis, can do research on it. No independent studies allowed. They do not like to be disproved. Mark Rahner enjoyed the movie, ” The Wrestler”, so that discredits him. (though he did enjoy Homboldt County). Frank Scheck does have some pretty good taste in motion pictures, I will admit.
Sorry cold but there have been hundreds if not thousands of studies performed by Universities, physicians, etc…of marijuana (aka cannabis, THC, etc…)
By the way to post something as “unbiased” and a “documentary” and then post that no “independent studies” are “allowed” takes away any valid point your original post may have had.
O.k. For the hundreds and thousands of studies, we can find contradictions in every one. Not one will tell you that you become a black jazz musician, as Anlinger advertised. Going mad and driving off of a bridge?Pfft.
My bad about independent studies. heres one from the University of Colorado Denver…..
“A study released last week by the University of Colorado Denver indicates that the legalization of medical marijuana reduces alcohol consumption and, as a result, alcohol-related traffic deaths without a corresponding increase in deaths caused by stoned drivers.”
And, “Let’s see a movie by a comedian about smoking marijuana for 30 days.” guess it wasn’t a documentary, so my point may still be valid?
Your problem cold is you make statements before you even look to see if they are accurate. It doesn’t help your position at all.
Fair enough….here is something I DID look up. It is from Scientific American:
“The government may also have a stake in a certain kind of result. One scientist tells of a research grant application to study marijuana’s potential medical benefits. NIDA turned it down. That scientist rewrote the grant to emphasize finding marijuana’s negative effects. The study was funded. ”
Imagine that….
cold I think you will agree that all most anything in moderation is OK. It becomes a problem when people do things to excess (even too much water can kill you). Marijuana has documented and proven medicinal properties.
But I think we can both agree that what ever was in this young woman’s system that night was not likely medicinal grade marijuana. It may have had something “added” to it to stretch out the “product” for the “distributor” so they could increase the “return on investment”. Or, maybe the marijuana and alcohol combined to increase the affect of both?
The fact of the matter is (and I hope you will agree) that her actions (OUI, speeding and texting) resulted in the death of two people and that is something she should be punished for.
I will add, that I would be more then willing to wager, that Bill Nye could do a more reliable study of the subject then our government.
Should be interesting to hear what Mr. Skaff has to say in court. She pretty much damned herself when she admitted to the officer that she had been texting. Her lawyer will tell her to deny everything so that it can be plea bargained down to a lesser charge.
Four families were impacted by her driving. She will bear the brunt of this for the rest of her life. Speaking from experience, it’s hard to tell young ones that they are NOT bullet proof. She’s going to need a lot of help in the future.
“She’s going to need a lot of help in the future”
How’s about NO!
she doesn’t deserve ANY help.
She deserves Prison for a very, very long time.
the families victims deserve and will need the help while they cope with the senseless loss of life that has occurred.
The fact that she denies drinking and texting in spite of the overwhelming evidence makes if fairly clear that she has no remorse and refuses to take responsibility for her actions.
lock her up and throw away the key.
So long as she gets that help in PRISON, i am fine with that….take all the help you can get, but that is where this young lady belongs.
And is NEVER allowed to drive again. That’s the most important one for me.
I heard some people quit drinking while in prison.
How very sad for everyone involved. I was just trying to explain distracted driving to my 15 and 12 year olds. It doesn’t have to be texting. It could be eating, talking, reading, flipping through radio stations…you just never know what can happen in a split second. I don’t think this young woman MEANT to kill her two friends and injur another. I’m sure that wasn’t her intention at all. It was indeed a tragic accident. I bet if she could do it all over again, she wouldn’t be stoned and driving nor texting and driving. My bet is that she wasn’t the only one with MJ on her system. I don’t agree with what she did nor am I stating that she shouldn’t be charged. It is a horrible situation for all involved and I will pray that everyone who can, will get through this. I will also pray for the 2 that didn’t make it out.
This was not a “tragic accident”. It was a PREVENTABLE accident.
She may not have set out to kill two people but the end result was she KILLED two people.
Driving while impaired (drugs, alcohol or both), texting, speeding (75 mph), etc…is akin to putting one bullet in a revolver, spinning the cylinder, putting the gun to your head and pulling the trigger. You have a one in six chance of shooting yourself.
She made a conscious choice to consume not one it seems but two illegal substances and got behind the wheel of a 2,000 lb motor vehicle and drive. That was spin #1. Then she decides to exceed the speed limit and topping out at 75 mph. That was spin #2. Then she decides to start texting while still under the influence and speeding. That was spin #3 and that is when she lost the game of Russian Roulette and killed two people.
Would she do it again? I am not sure but based on her attorneys statements about not speeding or texting and blaming a “patch of ice” I would say she hasn’t learned her lesson yet.
Agree 100% – yes, accidents are tragic both for the people that cause them as well as the people injured in them and the families of the people who are killed in them. But, it does appear, for all intensive purposes, this was completely preventable on so many levels. That also appears to be the case with most accidents that have killed and/or severely injured young adults in the recent past. Jared Dorr 21 of Milbridge -another prime example from this past weekend… Joseph White 23 of Trenton and James Crawford 22 0f Otis – May 27… need I keep going? I am sure I could…. How many more is it going to take before they stop and think about what they are doing? Or will they ever?
First:
“while driving 75 miles per hour on Route 219”
Then:
“Her attorney, James Howaniec, denies she was drunk or texting and said Lowe lost control when the car hit a patch of ice.”
Okay so criminal speeding, reckless endangerment…and the manslaughter charges would still stand.
====================
Eh?
Any idea what the speed limit is through there?
minimum 2 years if you are an elitist, 6 years to 8 years for the lower class.. friends will be gone before you are out.
Good point. I know from the past that I like my enemies more than “friends.”
Respectfully agree, jd.
Have a safe and happy 4th!
And you also!
Everything in moderation…even moderation.