A state patrol trooper whose police car collided with an SUV that killed the wife of Atlanta Braves head trainer Jeff Porter has been placed on leave. Continue reading after the jump.
State officials have put the trooper driving the car on administrative leave while authorities probe the New Year’s Eve crash in Atlanta, Georgia.
Kathy Porter, 54, of Loganville, Georgia, was on her way to the annual college football Chick-fil-A-Bowl game with her husband, son and a friend.The couple’s son David, 19, and friend Courtney Ann Williams, 18, were taken to hospital but were released last night along with Mr Porter.
Some witnesses said they were not sure the police car had its sirens on and a patrol official confirmed the trooper was going through a red light.‘The Braves family is deeply saddened and shocked to learn about the tragic accident,’ a spokesman for the baseball team said last night.
‘Our thoughts and prayers go out to Jeff and Kathy’s family, their son David and all their friends and loved ones.’
Officials said the patrol cruiser had its the lights on and siren activated on Saturday at 4:40pm when it crashed with the SUV driven by Mr Porter.But witness Sandy Jones told WSBTV: ‘I see his lights, but there’s no siren, and he’s speeding up. If he’s in an emergency why are there no sirens?’
‘You still exercise due regard when you pass any type of intersection or anything, but he was going against the red light’
Mark Hambert
‘You still exercise due regard when you pass any type of intersection or anything,’ Captain Mark Hambert of Georgia State Patrol told WSBTV.
‘But he was going against the red light.’
The state patrol trooper collided with a Ford Expedition driven by Mr Porter at an intersection with Capitol Avenue and Memorial Drive.
The trooper, travelling westbound on Memorial Drive, was en route to help another trooper who was attempting to stop a motorcyclist.
The rider was located on nearby Interstate 20, west of the Downtown Connector, and had failed to give way, a state patrol spokesman said.
‘The Braves family is deeply saddened and shocked to learn about the tragic accident. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Jeff and Kathy’s family, their son David and all their friends and loved ones’
Atlanta Braves spokesman
The patrol car collided with the Ford Expedition that was northbound on Capitol Avenue, hitting the SUV on the passenger’s side.
The SUV then struck a utility pole, killing Mrs Porter. Mr Porter, his son and Ms Williams were taken to Grady Memorial Hospital for treatment.
The trooper was examined at the same hospital and released.
Mr Porter has been on the Atlanta Braves’ training staff for nearly three decades and the head athletic trainer for nine years.
