The Hamilton man charged in Monday's fatal Turnpike accident has a history of license suspensions and motor vehicle violations, officials said.
UPDATE: Witnesses say Hahn was driving erratically
The Hamilton man charged in Monday's fatal New Jersey Turnpike accident has a history of license suspensions and motor vehicle violations, officials said.
Scott Hahn, 36, has been charged with aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide for the deaths of Tim, 48, and Bridget O'Donnell, 5, who were killed in a horrific accident Monday on the Hudson County Extension in Jersey City, Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Leo Hernandez said.
Hahn's driving record indicates that his license has been suspended 28 times and that he has had 13 violations, Mairin Bellack, a spokeswoman for the Motor Vehicle Commission said.
Most of the suspensions were for administrative reasons. Hahn's last suspension was in 2010, while his last violation came in 2007, Bellack said.
An administrative suspension can be caused by a number of circumstances, such as not paying a surcharge on a ticket, Bellack said. Many of Hahn's violations are from driving with a suspended license, she added.
He has four speeding violations, two from 1998 and two from 2002, Bellack said, emphasizing the violations occurred over a decade ago.
Hahn has no history of DWI, DUI, or distracted driving. His license was in good standing at the time of the crash and did not have any points, Bellack said.
Based on the preliminary investigation, detectives believe O'Donnell, who was driving a 2001 Chevrolet Malibu, was slowing with traffic in lane 10 at the 14C tolls when he was rear-ended and propelled through the toll plaza. O'Donnell's sedan, which was travelling westbound, was then thrust into the eastbound lanes of traffic, where it was struck by a CarePoint Health van, authorities said.
O'Donnell taught chemistry and physics to sophomores, juniors and seniors at County Prep High School, one of the Hudson County Schools of Technology. Bridget attended the school's daycare program.
This afternoon, Hahn is expected to make first court appearance on the charges at the Hudson County Administrative Building. He has been held on a $1 million cash or bond bail, Hernandez said.
Details surrounding the investigation have not yet been made available. State Police had originally announced that in addition to two counts of vehicular homicide, Hahn was charged with two counts of manslaughter -- a second-degree offense. However, Hernandez confirmed today that Hahn instead faces two counts of aggravated manslaughter, which is a first-degree crime.