by Antoinette Borbon and Sanam Monjazeb
Editor’s note: For background, here’s the coverage of the preliminary hearing
The Kristal Sutton trial commenced today, November 13, 2013, with three witnesses testifying. 28-year-old Sutton is being prosecuted for a felony hit and run on June 13, 2013, as she allegedly ran over 58-year-old Valerie Horner with her car and fled the scene before the authorities showed up. Horner received life-threatening injuries from the car and died from these injuries two days later.
The trial began with an audio interview between Sutton and Officer Lutrell.
Sutton, who sounded frightened in the interview, told the officer she was attacked by the victim when she went to 7-Eleven for a drink. She stated she was approached by the woman, who was aggressively asking for money. As she tried to drive away, the woman was hanging onto her door, but Sutton continued driving to get away after they had exchanged words.
She was afraid of the woman and told the police that the woman had gotten into her car at one point. When asked if she knew that she had run over the woman, Sutton responded no. She told the cops she fled because she lacked insurance and did not want her car to be towed. However, the officer said on the stand that Sutton told him about four times that she fled because she was scared. Officer Lutrell was asked if he felt Sutton was sober, and he replied yes.
During cross-examination, Public Defender Tracie Olson asked the officer about the time of the incident and how far the defendant lived from the store, as well as whether or not she was sober.
Officer Luttell told Sutton that Horner was received by the UC Davis Medical Center with skull fracture injuries and tire tracks on her stomach. Sutton, however, stated she did not feel like she had hit anything while driving away.
The officer asked how she could possibly not feel it when she ran over the woman, but the defendant had asserted that she did not feel anything. She thought she may have clipped the woman but not run her over.
The officer stated the woman was at least 200 pounds, and when he arrived on the scene he found her to be bleeding from one nostril with tire tracks on her stomach, and she seemed to be snoring.
He did not want to move her because he did not know what injuries she had and waited for AMR to show up. He later found out where Sutton lived and proceeded to question her and make the arrest.
The second witness, Shay Whitley, was present at the same 7-Eleven on the day of the incident. Whitley was waiting in the cash register line behind the defendant and noticed Sutton exiting the store and getting into a white car.
Whitley had finished her purchase and was walking out of the store when she witnessed Sutton getting out of her car and yelling at a group of 10 to15 people, who were shouting at her to turn her car off and not leave the scene.
Though Whitley did not personally witness the alleged hit and run, she testified that this was not a friendly interaction between the yelling defendant and the crowd, as Sutton was cussing at them, claiming she “was not f***ing going anywhere.”
Shortly after, however, the defendant got back into her car and took off on East Street. Whitley could clearly see someone lying on the ground behind the car, and claimed the defendant knew she had hit her. She remembers hearing Sutton say the victim was attacking her. Additionally, she informed an officer about all this testimony on the night of the incident.
The third witness, Marissa Romero, was also present at the scene of the crime on June 13. As her husband was eating at a taco restaurant next door, Romero remained in her parked car to the left of the 7-Eleven’s entrance.
She heard a thump-thump sound and through the windows of the car parked next to her, noticed people running; as she took a closer look at the parking lot, she realized a body had rolled under a car. Romero immediately called 911 and ran out to check the victim’s pulse since she is a Certified First Assistant. She then saw the white vehicle drive forward a bit until it finally stopped and Sutton came out to people yelling at her.
The defendant vulgarly stated that the victim tried to attack her, and then drove off. Meanwhile, Romero was on the phone with the dispatcher and gave a description of the car, at the same time checking the woman on the ground. Although everyone around her advised her not to touch the woman, Romero did not respond and remarked that the woman seemed asleep, making snoring sounds.
The police eventually showed up and she remained at the scene, noticing that someone was taking a video of the victim and commenting on how they could take a video instead of calling the cops.
In the audience were family members of the victim and defendant. The trial is scheduled to continue throughout the rest of the week.
[quote]Public Defender Tracie Olson asked Sutton about the time of the incident and how far she lived from the store, as well as whether or not she was sober.[/quote]
Sutton was on the stand the first day of trial?
I’m pretty sure that’s supposed to read that she asked the Officer how far Sutton lived from the store, but I’ll clarify that with the writers.
this will be interesting to see. one account of this case is that the victim attacked the young woman driver and she panicked, the other is that they got into an argument and she intentionally ran the woman over.
This is going to get interesting. I do not know the defendant, have never met her, have no knowledge of her. What I do know is I have had interactions with the deceased. She was not the calm, “wouldn’t hurt a fly”, quiet person her family is portraying. She was a violent drunk who I had the misfortune to deal with on several different occasions. I am convinced had the defendant simply stayed put, she would never have been arrested….
Jury acquitted yesterday. Based on what I saw in the preliminary hearing, I’m not surprised by the verdict. The problem is that the defendant here was involved in a heated confrontation with the victim. The victim may have jumped in the way and then the defendant was confronted by an angry group of people. It is entirely possible that fearing for her safety, she could make a case that she fled to home, at which point the police were there and arrested her. From the prelim, that seemed a plausible defense.
Extremely happy to hear about the acquittal!