A woman who drove into a 6-year-old girl who had just gotten off a school bus and then left the scene is heading to prison, according to Coweta County’s top prosecutor.
Gloria Kimberly Blevins, 43, pleaded guilty to several charges Wednesday.
She was sentenced to 12 years in prison with the following eight years on probation, District Attorney Herb Cranford said.
Blevins pleaded guilty to serious injury by vehicle and felony hit-and-run, according to Cranford. Charges of DUI and overtaking a school bus merged with the other charges as a matter of law.
In October, Blevins had a blood-alcohol level of 0.219 — almost three times the legal limit — when she hit “Lulu” Pedrick in a Newnan neighborhood, officials said.
A vehicle matching the description of the one that hit Pedrick was seen at a residence in the neighborhood, police said. Officers determined by damage to the vehicle and witness testimony that it was the one that hit the girl, and Blevins was arrested.
Pedrick was hit after she left the bus, went to the curb and waited for the bus driver to signal her across the street, authorities said at the time.
After Pedrick began to cross the street, a Hummer 2 came from around a curve, changed lanes into oncoming traffic and passed two stopped cars and the bus, police said.
The bus driver attempted to warn Pedrick and stop the vehicle but couldn’t get the girl’s attention, and the driver continued past the bus, according to police.
The car hit her when she stepped out from in front of the bus to cross the street, police said.
Pedrick returned home after a stay in a hospital.
MORE: Atlanta crime news
In other news:
About the Author
