Judge issues gag order in Easter crash case

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By MEGAN MATTEUCCI

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

A judge barred attorneys from talking publicly about the case involving a Fulton County woman charged with killing five people in a hit and run crash.

Aimee Michael was indicted on 15 counts, including five counts of vehicular homicide and hit and run.

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Fulton County Superior Court Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams demanded the gag order in the case against Aimee Michael on Monday. A clerk for the judge said the order had not been signed as of 5 p.m. Tuesday and would be available Wednesday morning.

Michael’s lawyer, Scott Smith, and a spokeswoman for the Fulton County district attorney, said they could not comment on the case.

Michael, 22, is charged with causing a chain-reaction crash on Camp Creek Parkway on Easter and then driving off. Police say the crash killed five people, including a newborn, a 6-year-old girl and a 9-year-old girl.

Police said Michael then concealed her family’s damaged BMW and had it secretly repaired.

She was arrested 10 days after the accident and is now charged with 15 felonies, including five counts of vehicular homicide and five counts of hit and run.

Her mother, Sheila Michael, was also charged with tampering with evidence. The mother, 52, was a teacher at an Atlanta elementary school at the time.

The daughter was released from jail on a $150,000 bond and ordered to be on 24-hour home confinement. The judge ordered her to wear an electronic ankle monitoring device.

Last month, Fulton County District Attorney Paul Howard asked a judge to tighten those bond conditions.

It is unclear if any action has been taken on Howard’s request. Yvette Brown, spokeswoman for the district attorney, said she could not comment because of the gag order.

As of Tuesday night, Michael remained free on bond.

Michael’s attorneys have also asked for her bond to be amended to allow her to leave home to go to church and visit her lawyer.