Trial date to be set in fatal car wreck
Woman charged in accident that killed prominent Albuquerque physician
A trial date is expected to be set next week for the woman accused of causing an early morning crash that killed a prominent Albuquerque doctor a year ago.
Sara Casados faces charges including vehicular homicide and leaving the scene of a crash. According to police, Casados was traveling 70 mph in a 35 mph zone in a small pickup truck when she hit Teodora Konstantinova’s car, which was stopped at a traffic light at Louisiana and Constitution.
Casados’ attorney, Ousama Rasheed, said his client was suffering a medical episode at the time of
the accident.
Konstantinova was a physician and an associate professor of internal medicine at the UNM School of Medicine. She was on her way to work when her vehicle was hit. She died hours later in a local hospital, police said.
Her husband, Konstantin Konstantinov, purchased a full-page advertisement in Monday’s Journal on the oneyear anniversary of the wreck.
“We pray for Tedi and for all others whose lives are taken in tragedies like this,” the ad said. “We also thank the many people who continue to think of her and keep her memory alive.”
Casados was indicted Nov. 30 and entered not guilty pleas at an arraignment Dec. 12. She is set to appear in court Wednesday for a scheduling conference, at which point Judge Cristina Jaramillo will likely set a trial date.
Police said she left the scene and was found on the floor at a nearby dialysis clinic flailing her arms and legs while shouting “all hell is going to break loose.” Officers did not find signs to indicate that she was intoxicated, a point that Rasheed reiterated as he said Casados was suffering a panic attack.
“This is a person with a medical condition, a medical episode, that resulted in a very important person’s tragic death,” he said. “My client is brokenhearted over this situation. Brokenhearted.”
Konstantinov said his family is also heartbroken. They look forward to learning what happened that morning as the case unfolds.
“We are looking for closure, that is number one, and then some justice,” he said. “This is really interconnected.”