GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — A woman was a quarter-mile into her drive to work when police say one of two drivers racing each other slammed into her car and killed her.
Susan Kirkland died after a crash on Old Norcross Road at Glen Chase Drive near Lawrenceville on July 22, according to Gwinnett County police and arrest warrants.
Kathy Vosper, a longtime friend, said Kirkland had recently switched shifts and was driving to the store’s garden department that evening.
“Her faith was central to who she was,” Vosper said of Kirkland, a former vet tech who took in strays and looked out for neighbors who struggled with English. “It’s extremely infuriating and frustrating.”
Warrants say Fabian Ricardo Harris was driving a 2001 Mercedes at 93 mph on a road posted for 45 while racing a motorcycle, weaving through traffic and passing at least six cars before striking Kirkland’s car as she turned. Harris is charged with first-degree homicide by vehicle and four misdemeanors, according to the warrants, and a magistrate set his bond at $25,000.
Prosecutors say the motorcyclist, Michael Edward Pestle, hit more than 70 mph on the same stretch, watched the Mercedes roll Kirkland’s car, then rode home without stopping.
He is charged with homicide by vehicle for leaving the scene and felony hit-and-run, and warrants show a judge denied him bond, calling him a flight risk.
“She was someone who showed up for people,” Vosper said. “It’s a loss that a lot of people are going to feel deeply in her circle.”
Master Police Officer Brock Marks said investigators worked the case for more than two weeks before seeking the warrants on Aug. 7.
“There was a needless life that was lost because two individuals took it upon themselves to engage in the act of street racing here in Gwinnett County,” Marks said.
Her only surviving brother, who Vosper said just finished cancer treatment, is moving into her house to care for the dog and cat she left.
“People need to see the human behind this tragedy and realize that the street racing is touching lives,” Vosper said.
Vosper said Kirkland believed in the work at Gwinnett Animal Welfare and Enforcement, which is collecting donated beds for the dogs and cats in its Lawrenceville kennels.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]