N.C. Highway Patrol officials have identified the victim of a fatal Woodleaf Road crash as Jatara Moore, 22, of Salisbury. Moore was the passenger in a Honda Accord that collided with a sport utility vehicle Sunday night.
Officials said the driver, Amber Pruitt, 20, left the road, overcorrected the vehicle and skidded across the road to the left. Pruitt was traveling east on Woodleaf Road while the SUV, driven by James Stockton, 45, was traveling west on Woodleaf Road. The Honda crossed both lanes into the center line and collided with the SUV. The passenger’s side, where Moore was sitting, received the impact. She died at the scene. Pruitt has been charged with misdemeanor death by vehicle. The crash was reported around 9:36 p.m.
There were three others in the Honda — a 4-year-old male, an 18-year-old female and a 24-year-old female — whose names were not immediately available. A passenger, a 12-year-old male, was riding in the SUV. His name was not available. All of the people involved in the crash were taken to Novant Health Rowan Medical Center, however officials say they are not listed as patients.
It is not clear what caused the crash, highway patrol officials said, it occurred at the intersection of Woodleaf Road and the service road that leads to a nearby restaurant and gas station off Statesville Boulevard.
The SUV sustained heavy damage to the front end came to rest off the north side of Woodleaf Road. Woodleaf Road was shut down between Holly Avenue and North Jake Alexander Boulevard for over an hour.
Numerous bystanders gathered along the side of the road as emergency crews worked to free a pinned passenger, believed to be Moore.
Franklin and Salisbury fire departments responded, as did Rowan County EMS, Rowan County Rescue Squad, Salisbury Police and the N.C. Highway Patrol. Family and friends gathered near the crash site Monday night for a candlelight vigil to honor Moore.
Contact reporter Shavonne Potts at 704-797-4253.