Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina announced that a Mount Laurel woman has been charged with homicide for causing the death of her husband late last year after the car she was driving left the roadway, struck a utility pole and overturned in a wooded area in Delran.
Tameka Lawson, 37, was charged with one count of Vehicular Homicide (First Degree). She was taken into custody today at her residence, and will now be scheduled for a first appearance in Superior Court in Mount Holly.
The charge was filed after the Prosecutor’s Office received the results of toxicology tests conducted on blood drawn from Lawson following the crash.
The investigation revealed that Lawson was driving along Hartford Road on November 12, 2017, with her husband, 38-year-old Jamar Rentie, as a front-seat passenger. At approximately 11:15 p.m., the car veered from the roadway and went airborne before striking the utility pole.
Both occupants were extricated by the Delran Fire Department. Rentie was pronounced dead at the scene. Lawson was transported by the Delran Emergency Squad to Lourdes Medical Center of Burlington County in Willingboro, where she was released after an evaluation.
The case will now be prepared for presentation to a Burlington County Grand Jury for possible indictment. Assistant Prosecutor Thaddeus E. Drummond, who oversees the BCPO Collision and Analysis Reconstruction Unit, is prosecuting the case.
The death was investigated by the Prosecutor’s Office and the Delran Township Police Department. The lead investigators are BCPO Major Crimes Unit Detective Brian Miller and Delran Township Police Detective Dennis M. Rooney.
All persons are considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.