No criminal charges will be filed following an investigation into the death of a Buffalo woman who was hit by a Buffalo Police patrol car in March 2018.
Susan LoTempio was 64 when she was fatally struck by a Buffalo police vehicle.
The Special Investigations and Prosecutions unit with the New York State Attorney General issued the ruling on Thursday.
In a news release, the SIPU stated the collision was an accident and charges were not justified.
“We send our deepest condolences to the family of Ms. LoTempio, whose death was a heartbreaking tragedy,” said Attorney General Barbara Underwood in a statement. “We undertook a comprehensive investigation into the accident, part of our commitment to providing the public with exhaustive and transparent accounting of all cases we investigate under the executive order.”
The officer who drove the patrol car that hit LoTempio on Hertel Avenue was responding to a call at the time and did not flash the lights or siren, which aligns with the department's policy, Buffalo Police Captain Jeff Rinaldo said at the time of the crash.
The SIPU report states Officer Daniel Ahearn was alone in the patrol car at the time of the crash and was thus required to monitor the Mobile Computer Terminal in the vehicle.
The SIPU is urging the Buffalo Police Department to investigate changing the placement of the MCT to help ensure it does not obstruct parts of the driver’s view.
You can read the full report here: