Richet family vows to honor victim of fatal crash

LaKiesha Richet was killed on Dannehower Bridge; Courtney Clinton charged with homicide by vehicle

NORRISTOWN >> Some in the vast Richet family tree knew of 27-year-old Courtney R. Clinton prior to the pre-dawn hours of Aug. 4.

After a tragic fatal crash on the Dannehower Bridge, killing 41-year-old mother of four Lakiesha “Kiesha” Richet, who was operating her motorcycle when struck from behind, Clinton is now an unwanted household name.

“I’ve been in law enforcement my whole life,” said Willie Richet, the victim’s uncle, who added he did not personally know of the accused before the crash but that other family members did from work situations and around town. “I’m also a man of God. I have been my whole life. I have my own feelings.

“I don’t have the right words to express it. I just want the truth, and all the facts, to come out and give (Clinton) her just due. I know that accidents happen, but part of you still wants to lash out at the person who did it.

“She didn’t think anything about Kiesha. I wish she had known what she meant to all of us, not only our family but the entire community.”

Clinton was arrested and charged with homicide by vehicle Friday. Reports from accident investigators indicate that she was operating her SUV at a rate of 74 miles per hour, almost 30 above the posted limit of 45, on the Route 202 bridge long criticized for its lack of adequate lighting

at night.

Additionally, according to charges filed by the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, she was intoxicated while behind the wheel, with a blood-alcohol level of .138.

“Going 74 in a 45 zone, and .138 is almost twice the legal limit .08, makes it that much harder to take,” said Willie Richet, who was scheduled to meet with authorities Friday night to answer any lingering questions about the investigation and where the prosecution goes from here.

The facts of the case will surely be hard to swallow for the Richet family.

The victim was thrown when struck from behind, and the charges state that Clinton continued driving and ran over Richet, pinning her beneath the engine of her car. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

What is clear is that victim’s family plans to keep her memory alive. That begins with making sure justice is served. That process begins with a preliminary hearing scheduled for Sept. 6.

“I will attend,” said Willie Richet, of future court proceedings. “I told my nieces, and my daughter, that I plan to follow it all the way through.”

No matter the outcome, those closest to Kiesha Richet – a woman described as having a “heart of gold” —will have to navigate through life without her.

“It’s just been a real tough, tough situation for our entire family,” he said. “She would do anything for you.”

Willie Richet remembers his niece as a home health aide who sometimes worked double shifts – 16 hours – to raise her children, who are now between the ages of 6 and 22.

One of her children, age 19, returns to college at IUP at the end of the month, the extended family is doing its best to keep the two youngest focused.

“The two boys are 11 and 6,” he said. “We are just trying to keep them both busy and occupied, but it hasn’t been easy for the them – especially the older one. The 11-year-old understands, while the 6-year-old doesn’t fully understand yet. We are trying real hard to keep together.”

After a funeral attended by hundreds of friends and family earlier in the week, reality set in – and was capped by not only the arrest of the accused, but the gruesome details of the incident.

Janelle Richet, the victim’s first cousin, was also riding a motorcycle and one the scene. She spotted her cousin’s body under the accused’s vehicle.

According to Willie Richet, former Norristown Police Department Captain and Montgomery County Deputy Sheriff, she is about the return to work after taking a leave absence and will continue with therapy.

He also expressed relief that charges were filed after a delay of almost two weeks.

“Some in the family were worried that it might be swept under the rug,” he said, “but I told them to be patient, and to wait on the investigation.”