Woman Found Not Guilty In Fatal, 2013 Peabody Hit-And-Run Case

SALEM, MA -- Salem Superior Court Judge Kenneth Salinger found Kristiana Alexandrou, 30, of Danvers, not guilty Tuesday of negligent motor vehicle homicide and leaving the scene of a fatal accident. Had she been found guilty, Alexandrou could have been sentenced to up to 10 years in prison on the second charge. But Salinger ruled that she could not see 75-year-old Patricia Fleury when she struck her on Canal Street in August 2013 and did not know she had struck a person when she drove away.

Fleury, who died from her injuries, was not in a crosswalk as she crossed the street on a foggy and dark evening. According to the Salem News, which first reported this story, the judge was swayed by the testimony of Oscar Mazariegos, another driver who said he also did not see Fleury before she was struck.

"From all accounts, a very nice, beautiful, saintly older woman lost her life and my client for the last 4 1/2 years has had to deal with the stress and worry of a criminal prosecution," David Yannetti, Alexandrou's attorney, said. "Despite the successful outcome for her, my client will have to live with the fact that her actions took the life of someone for the rest of her life. There is some relief, but the pain is not going to end today."

For more on this story, see the Salem News. Subscribe to Peabody Patch for more local news and real-time alerts.

Patch file photo.

Dave Copeland can be reached at dave.copeland@patch.com or by calling 617-433-7851. Follow him on Twitter (@CopeWrites) and Facebook (/copewrites).