CT State’s Attorney inspector charged with evading responsibility after allegedly hitting teen on bike
An inspector with the Fairfield State’s Attorney’s Office was arrested Thursday and charged with evading responsibility after he was allegedly driving a car that hit a teenager on a bicycle in Bridgeport last month.
James Lawton, 61, was charged by inspectors from the New Britain State’s Attorney’s Office in connection with a warrant on charges of evading responsibility and failure to obey a traffic control signal, according to the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice.
Lawton, who has been placed on administrative leave, was released on a promise to appear and is scheduled to appear in Bridgeport Superior Court on Aug. 29.
Judicial officials on Thursday said Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin took the investigation out of the hands of Bridgeport police and tasked New Britain State’s Attorney Christian M. Watson with handling the matter to avoid any potential conflicts of interest.
The New Britain State’s Attorney’s Office will prosecute the case.
According to judicial officials, Lawton allegedly struck a 17-year-old who was on a bike in Bridgeport on July 11 at about 3 p.m. after he failed to make a complete stop at a traffic signal at the intersection of Main Street and Golden Hill Street and made a right turn as the biker was entering the crosswalk. Lawton was reportedly in a state-issued vehicle at the time.
Judicial officials allege that the collision caused the teenager to fall to the ground. Lawton allegedly stopped and got out of his vehicle and helped the teen pick up the damaged bicycle before leaving the scene, according to officials.
About two minutes later, judicial officials allege that Lawton briefly returned to an area close to the crash scene where the victim remained and was talking on his phone. Lawton allegedly stopped briefly and spoke to the victim before leaving again.
About an hour after the incident, the victim and his mother went to the Bridgeport Police Department to report the crash, officials said. While at the department, medics treated the victim for minor injuries before he was evaluated at Bridgeport Hospital.