A woman from Griggsville, Illinois, has been charged with murder after investigators concluded she deliberately drove her car into the path of an oncoming semi-truck, killing a 73-year-old passenger.
Jaime L. Rhode was arrested on Tuesday and is being held in the Pike County Jail. She faces two counts of first-degree murder and one count of attempted first-degree murder, according to the Pike County Sheriff’s Office. An arrest warrant was signed on Friday by Judge J. Frank McCartney.
The charges relate to a head-on collision on July 24 on U.S. 54 near the top of Atlas Hill in Pike County. Deputies responded at 7:54 p.m. and found that a passenger car driven by Rhode had collided with a semi-tractor pulling a trailer.
Three people in the car were injured and taken to medical facilities. One of them, 73-year-old Cherie K. Wells of Pittsfield, later died from her injuries in St. Louis County, Missouri.
Pike County Sheriff David Greenwood said deputies determined during the investigation that Rhode purposely steered her vehicle in front of the oncoming semi with the intent to kill everyone inside her car.
WGEM reported the arrest. All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in court.
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