State lawmaker charged in traffic fatality

MARIANNA (AP) -- State Sen. Bill Lewellen struck and killed a pedestrian and left the scene of the accident, state police said. Lewellen is also accused of being drunk.

Lewellen, 47, a Democrat from Marianna, was charged Monday night with driving while intoxicated, leaving the scene of a fatal accident and refusing a sobriety test, state police spokesman Bill Sadler said.

Lewellen ''was the driver of the vehicle that struck a pedestrian. The pedestrian is dead,'' Sadler said.

Sadler identified the victim as Sheila Bowers, 40, of Marianna.

The accident occurred about 6:10 p.m. Monday on Martin Luther King Street, which carries Arkansas 44 through the city, Sadler said.

''Two witnesses report that Ms. Bowers was seen stepping off the curb,'' Sadler said.

''The witnesses say they saw an eastbound vehicle approaching at high speed, and she was struck.''

The witnesses said the car stopped and the driver got out, but then he got back in his car and drove away, only to return a short time later, by which time Marianna police had arrived, according to Sadler.

''Mr. Lewellen told troopers he left the scene to go to an ambulance service to seek assistance,'' Sadler said.

About 9:30 p.m., Lewellen was at a local hospital being examined after he complained of chest pains.

An investigation is still under way, he said. The investigation will be conducted as any other, according to Sadler.

A person answering the telephone at Lewellen's residence Monday evening said he did not know about the crash. A woman answering the phone at his law office said she had no comment and hung up.

Lewellen was among the lawyers for the Lake Village School District, which successfully sued the state over its funding formula for public schools.