Probation Ordered For Fatal Crash While Texting

WESTMINSTER, Md. (AP) -- A Westminster woman must do 100 hours of community service for a fatal collision while texting behind the wheel.

Kendyl Puckett, 19, was sentenced Tuesday after a bench trial in Carroll County Circuit Court. Her convictions were first reported by the Carroll County Times.

Judge J. Barry Hughes says he'd like Puckett to speak to schoolchildren about the risks of texting while driving. But she won't have to, because she says she wasn't texting when her sport-utility vehicle hit another vehicle head-on.

Jill Bowers, 45, of Westminster was killed in the March 18 crash.

Puckett also was convicted of negligent driving and failure to drive right of center.

None of the offenses is punishable by incarceration. Puckett's sentence includes a year of supervised probation but no fine.