Crime & Safety
Driver In Alstede's Fatal Crash To Fight Careless Driving Ticket
Mom of toddler killed by shuttle bus plans to file wrongful death claim against Chester Twp. farm stand, report says.

The driver behind the wheel of a shuttle bus that accidentally hit and killed a two-year-old girl and severely injuring two others plans to fight the careless driving summons he was issued last fall.
According to dailyrecord.com, Neil McWilliams, represented by attorney Gerald Kelly, will fight the summons issued by the Chester Township police after the shuttle bus he was driving struck and killed Elizabeth “Ella” Fuehring at Alstede Farms in Chester Township on a Sunday afternoon in October 2014.
The incident severely injured Fuehring’s mother, Sarah, breaking her femur, and a friend of the family, Joanna Alemany, who suffered a broken pelvis.
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An investigation into the incident concluded in March when the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office, in conjunction with the Chester Township Police Department, announced there was no criminal wrongdoing on the part of McWilliams, and that the incident was accidental. The case was closed.
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Now that that investigation concluded, McWilliams’ ticket is scheduled for a court hearing, the report said. A penalty for careless driving usually results in a fine and two license points, the report said.
Kelly told the publication he’s more concerned public pressure will result in a harsher sentence – up to 15 days in jail and a license suspension – for McWilliams. The court hearing will not be held in Chester Township, according to the court’s clerk. Rather it has been transferred to the Morris County Prosecutor’s Office.
The report also noted that Sarah Fuehring has notified the Morris County Surrogate with the intention of pursuing a wrongful death claim against Alstede Farms.
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