A Galesburg woman has pleaded not guilty to aggravated DUI, reckless homicide, and drug possession in a fatal crash late last year on Lake Storey Road.
Ashley N. England, 32, appeared in Knox County court on Tuesday afternoon for a preliminary hearing.
England was on pretrial release for a separate charge of drug possession when her car crossed the double center line in the 1300 block of North Lake Storey Road and collided with another vehicle on Nov. 22.
The driver of the other vehicle, 72-year-old Marte Glass, died Nov. 30 from injuries sustained in the crash.
Glass, a Galesburg native, was a retired U.S. Army Major and a registered nurse who worked in the OSF St. Mary Medical Center ICU and coronary unit, and as a LifeFlight nurse.
Michael Ingles, a detective for the Galesburg Police Department, testified at the preliminary hearing that Glass was on her way to teach an aerobics class at Hawthorne Gym when the crash occurred.
He said the police department’s accident reconstruction report is not yet completed, and neither are toxicology reports.
But he said samples of England’s blood and urine were taken at OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria. Those preliminary tests showed the presence of methamphetamine and cannabis.
In England’s car, police found multiple syringes inside a denim bag. They also found a syringe containing a clear liquid that tested positive for methamphetamine and a small, green flashlight containing what’s believed to be cannabis.
Ingles also testified that England appeared to be delivering for DoorDash at the time of the crash, as police found bags of food from McDonald’s in her vehicle.
Judge Andrew Doyle found probable cause for the case to continue. A pretrial conference is set for March 2.
