GASTONIA, N.C. — A Gastonia woman charged in a fatal hit-and-run crash made her first court appearance Tuesday, where a judge set her bond at $500,000.
Laketta English, 36, faces a felony charge of hit-and-run resulting in injury or death in connection with an Oct. 19 collision on Garrison Boulevard. Investigators say English struck two pedestrians while driving, killing one of them, identified as Cody Cochran.
Authorities arrested English on Monday at her home with assistance from the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force.
During the bond hearing, defense attorneys argued the amount was excessive, citing English’s family obligations. Attorney Diane DePietropaolo Price told the court that English is a single mother of four children, ranging in age from 2 to 19, and that her eldest daughter was present in the courtroom.
Prosecutors countered that the evidence supports the high bond. Assistant District Attorney Chad Smith told the judge that English’s vehicle was discovered hidden less than a half-mile from the crash scene.
Smith also cited phone records indicating English scheduled a windshield replacement shortly after the collision. According to prosecutors, the repair was completed before Gastonia police located the vehicle.
Investigators also recovered a piece of bumper at the crash site that allegedly matched damage found on the underside of English’s vehicle.
Prosecutors further expressed concern that federal resources were required to locate and arrest English.
Gastonia police said traffic investigators found the suspected vehicle — a 2021 Mazda CX-9 SUV — on Oct. 24 after a weeklong review of video footage and data gathered by the department’s Real Time Crime Center. The SUV was hidden at a residence within a half-mile of the crash site and was impounded.
Police said the case has drawn widespread public attention, with a department video receiving more than 755,000 views on social media. Officials thanked the public for providing tips that aided the investigation.
The investigation remains ongoing. Anyone with additional information is encouraged to contact the Gastonia Police Department and ask for Officer Koeppel at 704-866-6702 or submit tips anonymously through Crime Stoppers of Gaston County.
