News Paper Updates

August 30th
Third driver in fatal cooperating

Once investigation completed, district attorney will decide on charges, Kingston police chief says.

EDWARD LEWIS elewis@timesleader.com

KINGSTON – Police have spoken to the three drivers they believe were involved in a fatal pedestrian accident on Wyoming Avenue late Wednesday night, Police Chief Keith Keiper said.

Keiper said the driver of a third vehicle that allegedly struck 32-year-old Sharon Shaughnessy arrived at police headquarters with her vehicle Friday morning.

Her name and the names of the two other drivers haven’t been released by police pending the investigation, Keiper said.

Police were searching for a light-colored, 2003 or 2004 Volvo, the third vehicle suspected of hitting Shaughnessy just after 10:30 p.m.

Shaughnessy was initially struck by a sport utility vehicle in the northbound lane as she crossed Wyoming Avenue near Pierce Street, Keiper said.

Keiper said the woman was then struck in the southbound lane by a second vehicle, and again by a third vehicle.

The drivers of the first and third vehicles that struck Shaughnessy sped away, and the driver of the second vehicle stopped at the scene, Keiper said.

The driver of the first vehicle surrendered to authorities on Thursday morning.

Keiper said the three drivers are cooperating with the investigation.

State police at Wyoming impounded the first and third vehicles, police said.

Shaughnessy, a resident of Kingston Manor, was walking home from her job at Wilkes-Barre Movies 14 where she worked in concessions.

Keiper said once the investigation is complete, it will be presented to the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office to determine if criminal charges will be filed.


Update: Kingston police identify hit-and-run victim 2:51 p.m.

By: Bob Kalinowski
Staff Writer

Published: Thursday, August 28, 2008 7:20 PM EDT
First reported: 10:23 a.m.

Updated: 12:07 p.m.

Updated: 2:51 p.m.

Kingston police have identified the woman killed Wednesday night in a hit-and-run crash as Sharon Shaughnessy, 32, of Kingston.

Meanwhile, police said one of the drivers they were looking for surrendered this afternoon.

Police say Shaughnessy was killed after three separate vehicles struck her as she crossed Wyoming Avenue at the Pierce Street intersection around 10:30 p.m.

The second vehicle stopped immediately. The first and third fled.

Police said the woman who surrendered this afternoon was the first to strike Shaughnessy. Police initially believed the driver to be male earlier in the investigation. Police continue to interview her.

Investigators continue to search for the driver of a third vehicle who struck the woman. The driver was a female in a silver car, possibly a Volvo.

Police say there will be no determination today as to whether charges will be filed.

12:07 p.m.
Kingston police are looking for two vehicles in connection with a bizarre hit-and-run crash Wednesday night that killed a female pedestrian on Wyoming Avenue.

Police on Thursday said three separate vehicles hit the woman as she crossed Wyoming Avenue at the Pierce Street intersection.

The woman died at the scene.

According to Kingston police Chief Keith Keiper:

The first vehicle was northbound on Wyoming Avenue toward Forty Fort when it hit the woman, pushed her into the southbound lane, and fled.

A second vehicle driving in the southbound lane then struck the woman. The female driver stopped.

A third vehicle traveling in the southbound lane ran over the victim and also fled.

Witnesses described the first vehicle as a dark-colored sports utility vehicle, possibly a Geo Tracker, with gray/silver bumper. The driver appeared to be a white male in his 30s wearing a baseball cap.

The third vehicle was a silver car, possible a Mazda or Mitsubishi.

Police said the victim, who resided in Kingston, was walking home from work when the accident occurred just before 10:30 p.m.

"It's a sad thing. People were supposed to stop at the scene of an accident. You have to know you hit somehting. They just drove away," Keiper said. "This is one of the worst I've seen in a long time."

Authorities know the identify of the victim, but have not yet notified the next of kin. An autopsy was under way this morning.

Wyoming Avenue was closed for hours, but is now open to traffic.

Kingston police are asking anyone with information to call police at 287-6911 or call 911.

10:23 a.m.
An unidentified female pedestrian was struck and killed on Wyoming Avenue late Wednesday night, near Pierce Street, Kingston police said.

The incident occurred just before 11 p.m., and Luzerne County Chief Deputy Coroner William Lisman pronounced the woman dead shortly after midnight. She was struck by three separate vehicles, according to witnesses. Two of the cars fled, they said.

Kingston Police and State Police at Wyoming were still on the scene early this morning. Police were interviewing witnesses at Kingston Police Headquarters, bystanders said.