MEDFORD, MASS. (WHDH) - A 17-year-old driver accused of killing one person and injuring two people in Medford on Sunday was under the influence of drugs at the time of the crash, officials said.
The boy, whose name has not been released, was driving in the area of Spring and Emerald streets at around 4:49 p.m. when he struck and killed 64-year-old Judith Moses of Brookline, according to a spokeswoman for Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan’s Office. Moses, a realtor, had just shown a condo to a client on Spring Street.
“It was so unexpected and she was doing her job,” said Judy Moore, who has been friends with Moses for more than 30 years.
A preliminary investigation indicates the boy kept driving down Spring Street and hit two more people and a dog before slamming into a Citizens Bank on Yeoman’s Avenue, officials said. Those two people, a 27-year-old man and a 28-year-old woman, were hospitalized with serious injuries. Their dog was also killed.
The teen was driving with a learner’s permit and had not yet obtained a driver’s license, police said. A drug recognition expert who responded to the scene determined the driver was under the influence of a drug, police added.
The boy was charged with operating under the influence causing serious bodily injury, leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident causing death, operating to endanger and unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle. He was arraigned Monday in Cambridge Juvenile Court.
In a message on Twitter, Medford Mayor Stephanie Burke said, “My thoughts and prayers go out to all those involved in this tragic event.”
Medford Superintendent Roy Belson, released the following statement to 7News: “Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this horrible tragedy. We will be working with law enforcement officials as they may require. Since this is a juvenile matter, we will have no further comment at this time.”
The cause of the crash is being investigated by the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office, Medford police and members of the Massachusetts State Police Collision Analysis and Reconstruction Section.
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