January 28, 2010 11:35 AM

Porn-Watching Truck Driver Killed Julie Stratton, Mother of Two, Say NY Cops

By
Carlin DeGuerin Miller
Topics
Daily Blotter
(WIBV/ Family Photo)
(WIBV)
BUFFALO, NY (CBS/AP) A big rig driver who killed Buffalo mother of two, Julie Stratton, probably never saw her disabled car before he plowed into it - that's because he was watching porn on his laptop computer, say New York State Police.

Photo: Julie Stratton and her family.

Stratton died as a result of the injuries she sustained in the Dec. 12, 2009 crash. Thomas Wallace, the 45-year-old truck driver, was arrested Tuesday and faces charges of second degree manslaughter.

The accident happened on a busy section of Interstate 90 outside of Pembroke, N.Y. Police say Stratton had hit a deer and had just called 911 to report the accident, according to CBS affiliate WIBV,when Wallace's tractor trailer smashed into her sedan from behind.

Photo: Julie Stratton's car was all but obliterated by the big rig that killed her.

The investigation into the crash determined that Wallace was an accident waiting to happen. In addition to watching porn while driving, he was said to be operating the tractor trailer for over 27 hours with a very limited amount of sleep.

"Amenities for truckers have come a long way with all the new technology," Ed Affi-Nito, a trucker with 32 years experience told the station, "but there [sic] a proper time to use it, and they're [sic] times when it's just not safe."

Unfortunately for Julie Statton's husband and two young children, she was sharing the road with one trucker who didn't make that distinction.


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