Columbia woman convicted for role in deadly 2014 crash
A Boone County Circuit Judge on Monday convicted 18-year-old Ashley Renee Moore of Columbia of a misdemeanor count of operating a motor vehicle in a careless and imprudent manner, for her role in a deadly 2014 Columbia crash.
Moore’s bench trial began on Dec. 17, and Judge Kimberly Jane Shaw took the case under advisement. Shaw ruled Monday and scheduled a Feb. 19 sentencing date in Columbia.
Moore’s maximum sentence would be one year in the Boone County Jail and/or a fine of up to $1,000.
A statement made Wednesday by Moore’s attorney, Daniel Pingleton, said Moore appreciated the “honest testimony” of witnesses to the crash, and hoped for a different outcome. The statement said even a “not guilty” verdict would offer her “little relief.
“At trial, Ms. Moore told the court that if she had it to do all over again, she would have simply let the other vehicle crash into her, instead of swerving to avoid a collision that resulted in a different tragedy,” the statement said. “Ms. Moore still feels this way.”
The deadly crash was reported Oct. 13, 2014, near Range Line and Elleta. Columbia Police said Moore failed to maintain a single lane of traffic, causing her to overcorrect, lose control of her vehicle and strike two pedestrians. One of the pedestrians, 44-year-old Dianna Barney, was taken to University Hospital in Columbia, where she was pronounced dead.
Columbia Police announced in March 2015 that officers found no evidence on the road to suggest that another vehicle swerved to avoid a collision with Moore, as referenced in Moore’s statement about the incident.
