Driver Charged With Murder
A man who was illegally drag racing has been charged with second-degree
murder after he careened into spectators gathered late at night on the
shoulder of a country road, police said, killing four people and
injuring others in a chaotic and bloody scene.
One driver apparently lost control of his 1989 Ford Mustang and plowed
into the spectators on the shoulder, then hit a tree, the North Carolina Highway Patrol said in a news release. Sgt. Michael Baker said little is known about the second driver, who fled.
The Mustang's driver, Jimmy Pearce II, 37, of Zebulon, is charged with
three counts of second-degree murder and two counts of assault with a
deadly weapon. Jail records didn't show whether he had an attorney. A
man who answered the door at Pearce's house said the suspect's relatives
didn't have any comment and that his wife wasn't home.
Pearce is expected to be charged with the death of the fourth victim, Baker said. A fifth person was in critical condition.
Two other bystanders were in fair condition Monday, said Teresa Moss, a spokeswoman for WakeMed hospitals in Raleigh.
The intersection of two country roads where the crash happened is
surrounded by farmland, along with modest houses on spacious lots.
The place where witnesses said the race started had two sets of skid
marks. Less than a quarter-mile down the road, another set of skid marks
veered to the right toward a stand of trees where the car came to rest.
Ramona Martinez said the car wrecked at the edge of her large yard,
about 100 yards from her house. She said she and her husband were
watching a movie late Sunday night when they heard the crash and went
outside.
"There were seven people on the ground. A lot of blood. It was
terrible," she said, adding that eventually a handful of ambulances and a
half dozen police cars with flashing lights showed up.
Martinez said there have been drag races along the road as often as
twice a month for the past year since she moved to the neighborhood. On
Sunday night, there were six or seven cars belonging to spectators
parked on a side road near her house. She said there were 15 to 20
people watching.
"They park on the street to see the racing. People were standing up
there to watch and take pictures," she said, pointing to the edge of her
property where the crash occurred.
She said her family hasn't complained in the past, but she's not sure if
any neighbors have. She said her three daughters and son, ages 8 to 15,
often walk their dog along the street where the racing happened.
"I feel unsafe," she said.
A quarter-mile away where the race started, a handful of people gathered
to see the crash site and share stories about those killed, including
Garland Earp, 39. The others killed were Undra Montrell Taybron, 40, of
Wilson; Arrington Earp, 23; and Carlton Ray Brooks, 42.
Terry Faison, who lives about a half-mile away, said he's known Garland
Earp for four or five years as part of a group that gathers in Middlesex
to get coffee and chat. He said Earp worked running errands and finding
truck parts for a tanker truck company that delivers to gas stations.
He said Arrington Earp was Garland Earp's nephew.
Mary Lou McClenny said she was a teacher's assistant for Garland Earp
when he was a first-grader in Middlesex in the early 1980s.
"He would keep you laughing," she said. "You just had students who were special to you, and he was one of them."
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CHARLOTTE, N.C.
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The North Carolina Highway Patrol charged Jimmy Pierce II, 37, of Zebulon with three counts of second-degree murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury. Pierce, who suffered minor injuries, is in custody. The other driver in the race fled the scene and remains at large.
Pierce made his first appearance in court on Monday and is being held in lieu of a $1 million bond. Mike Reece, his court-appointed lawyer, could not be reached immediately for comment.
Killed at the scene were Carlton Ray Brooks, 42; Arrington Earp, 23; Garland Earp, 38, addresses unknown; and Undra Montrell Taybron, 40, of Wilson, the Highway Patrol said in a news release.
The three injured were taken to a hospital in Raleigh for treatment. They are Larry Deans, 43, of Bailey; Roncellis Marshall, 44, of Battleboro; and Ida Mae Rapa, 42, of Selma. Authorities described Rapa’s injuries as life-threatening.
The Highway Patrol said the race began at about 10:35 p.m. Sunday in the town of Middlesex, about 30 miles east of Raleigh.
Pierce was driving a 1989 Ford Mustang west in the westbound lane of a two-lane road and racing beside another car traveling west in the eastbound lane. Pierce drifted onto the right shoulder and hit a crowd gathered to watch the race, then collided with a tree, the Highway Patrol said.
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