Woman Who Allegedly Ran Friend Over with Truck Has Trial Set for September

An Iowa City woman accused of killing her friend with a truck following an argument has had a date set for her trial.

Miranda Lalla, 50, of Iowa City has had her vehicular homicide trial set for September 11, and her pretrial conference set for Aug. 31, according to court records filed Wednesday in the Johnson County Courthouse.

Lalla was initially charged with second-offense drunken driving, but after an investigation the Johnson County Attorney's Office filed an amended charge of felony vehicular homicide with operating vehicle while intoxicated, a Class B felony.

Lalla submitted a plea of not guilty to this charge on July 3 to the Johnson County Courthouse, according to online court records.

Police say Lalla ran over Pamela Gross, 44, of Iowa City, following a physical dispute in June.

Investigators say Gross was dropped off at home by Lalla in a parking lot area near Gross' residence at 315 E. First St. at about 7:18 p.m. on the night of June 17, according to an  criminal complaint.

Lalla told investigators that she and Gross had gotten into a physical altercation after Lalla had dropped Gross off after the pair had beers at the nearby Jobsite bar, according to the criminal complaint.

After the fight, as Lalla decided to leave with the truck door open, she allegedly backed into Gross who was standing right next to the vehicle. According to the criminal complaint, Gross was knocked over by the open door and pulled under the truck.

Gross later died of her injuries.

After the accident, police say Lalla showed measurable impairment when performing field sobriety tests. She later refused chemical testing, but officers obtained a search warrant for a blood test.

Lalla blew a .093 on a blood-alcohol breathalyzer test, according to the criminal complaint

Lalla has entered in a written request for a change of venue for her trial due to her belief that media coverage would bias jurors against her. At this point, this request has not been acted on by the court.