Hot Springs woman charged in car crash that killed child in 2023

HOT SPRINGS — A Hot Springs woman was arrested March 15 on a misdemeanor count of negligent homicide stemming from a car crash one year ago in which a child was killed.

Elizabeth Tabora Hill, 22, was taken into custody at her place of employment on Albert Pike around 6 a.m. March 15 on a warrant for negligent homicide, punishable by up to one year in jail. She was later released on a $10,000 bond and is set to appear April 16 in Garland County District Court.

According to court records, the only prior criminal history listed for Hill was she pleaded guilty on Jan. 27, 2022, to a misdemeanor charge of third-degree aggravated assault on a family or household member where she was fined $290. A no-contact order that had been issued in the case was dismissed that day at the victim’s request.

According to the probable cause affidavit on Friday’s arrest, on March 18, 2023, around 12:09 a.m., Hot Springs police responded to the 400 block of Airport Road regarding an injury accident.

Responding officers found a 2010 Buick LaCrosse on the south side of the roadway that had significant damage and was on fire. The car was lying against the railroad cantilever, a large metal utility pole that holds signs and lights for railroad crossings.

Passersby had removed the driver, identified as Hill, and a juvenile passenger. Hill was incapacitated due to her injuries and she and the child, age and sex not listed, were both transported by Life-Net to CHI St. Vincent Hot Springs where the child was pronounced dead “due to injuries sustained in the accident.”

Hill later recovered from her injuries, the affidavit said.

Witnesses at the scene said the LaCrosse was westbound on Airport Road when it drove left of center, crossing into the center turning lane, and into oncoming traffic before exiting the roadway. It then struck the curb and hit the cantilever, which was corroborated by security video footage from a nearby business.

On March 18, 2023, shortly after 1 a.m., Hill completed a urinalysis/drug screen at the hospital that had a “presumptive positive” result for the presence of cannabinoids or marijuana.

According to Hill’s history, she has never smoked cigarettes or used smokeless tobacco and does not drink alcohol, but reported the use of marijuana.

An accident reconstruction reportedly documented the speed of the LaCrosse at around 60 mph at the time of the wreck and it was noted the speed limit in that section of Airport Road is 40 mph.

Conditions were reportedly clear and dry at the time of the accident, according to an earlier Arkansas Department of Public Safety fatality report, which also indicated the car had “gone airborne” after striking the curb.

After further investigation, a warrant was issued for Hill’s arrest on the negligent homicide charge.