Charges filed in deadly hit-and-run on busy Ross Township road

ROSS TOWNSHIP, Pa. — A driver is facing charges after police said she hit and killed a woman on Babcock Boulevard before speeding off on Jan. 13.

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Erin Petroski, 39, is charged with homicide by vehicle while driving under the influence, accidents involving death/personal injury, involuntary manslaughter, two counts of driving under the influence of alcohol or controlled substance, careless driving and driving vehicle at safe speed.

Officials said Petroski turned herself in to police.

According to Ross police, the accident happened on Babcock Boulevard near Sheetz at around 11 p.m.

31-year-old Elizabeth Griser was pronounced dead at a hospital.

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“It’s just a shame that a cruel person could hit a person, not stop, not call 911, leaving my daughter on the road,” the victim’s mother Sally Griser told Channel 11 earlier this month. “I will never recover from this. My daughter Elizabeth Griser was innocent, just walking home to meet her brother at Sheetz.”

According to the criminal complaint, traffic cameras showed a car with front passenger side damage and a passenger side headlight missing an estimated .19 miles south from where Griser was found.

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The car was tracked to a house on Thompson Run Road. When detectives arrived at the home, they found the car in the driveway.

Police spoke with Petroski on the front porch of the house. When detectives asked Petroski what happened, she said “I don’t know.”

The officers then asked if Petroski knew she was in an accident, she said yes. They asked if she thought to stop to which Petroski said “I did stop. I’m not going to say much more. I understand why you’re here.”

Court documents said the detectives smelled a strong scent of alcohol from Petroski’s breath.

According to the criminal complaint, Petroski’s boyfriend told police that she was at Hal’s Bar and Grill on Babcock Boulevard at around 8 p.m. He met her there at around 10 p.m. and stayed for around 30 minutes.

Petroski’s boyfriend told police that he watched as she left the bar, going southbound onto Babcock Boulevard toward Sheetz. The boyfriend left the bar a few minutes after Petroski and met her at the house on Thompson Run Road. She was standing in the driving and was “being hysterical,” stating that she hit something, although she didn’t say what she hit.

Petroski’s blood was drawn for testing at around 5 a.m. after the crash. Her blood alcohol content was .110%. The legal limit in Pennsylvania is .08%.

Pieces of car left at the scene were also matched to the damaged portion of Petroski’s car. Data shows that the brakes weren’t applied at any time prior to the crash and that Petroski was driving almost ten miles per hour over the posted speed limit.

Surveillance video from the area show Griser getting off of a Port Authority bus and walking through the parking lot of The Barn before walking out of frame, court documents said. Video also shows Griser walking north in the southbound lane of Babcock Boulevard just south of the Sheetz before she’s illuminated by headlights and hit.

The car’s brake lights never lit up and the car kept going south on Babcock Boulevard. Griser was lying in the road unattended for 11 minutes before bystanders arrived and gave her CPR, the complaint said.

Petroski’s car is tracked through surveillance cameras going south toward Thompson Run Road. At one point, the car is seen driving halfway over the center line into oncoming traffic.

According to court documents, Petroski has a prior conviction of DUI and received an Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition in 2018.

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