High Driver In Fatal I-95 Crash Was Pulled Over Just Prior: PD

READING, MA – Massachusetts State Police ordered an independent investigation into a crash last summer that lead to the death of a Bedford man. Christopher Weisz, 42, was thrown from his motorcycle in the Aug. 24 chain-reaction crash and later died from his injuries.

A Tyngsborough woman twice convicted of drunk driving was charged with operating under the influence of drugs in connection with the crash. Police said 50-year-old Lynn DeWolfe's "erratic" driving caused the fatal crash on I-95 North in Reading and left more crashes in her wake as she drove away.

She was eventually pulled over in Wakefield and allegedly told police she had taken Lorazepam and Gabapentin. Although she had a device in her car meant to prevent drunk driving, police said she was high on drugs.

But according to the Boston Globe, DeWolfe had been stopped by a state trooper 19 minutes before the first crash that morning. The trooper did not determine her to be drunk after performing a couple of tests and let her go. State police turned over the investigative report to the Middlesex District Attorney's office this week, eight months after the crash, the Globe reported.

State police have said the trooper who stopped Wolfe acted according to protocol, according to NBC Boston. Col. Kerry Gilpin has ordered an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash, including correspondence between state police and prosecutors.

DeWolfe was also charged with leaving the scene of a crash that caused personal injury and death, negligent operation of motor vehicle, and marked lanes violation. She has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Photo by Jenna Fisher, Patch