Driver was using cell phone during crash that killed a Harrisburg teacher, court reports say

From PennLive.com:

by EMILY OPILO, Of The Patriot-News
Wednesday September 16, 2009, 6:50 PM

A 20-year-old Annville, Pennsylvania, woman was using her cell phone during a crash that killed an award-winning Harrisburg teacher in June, according to court records released today.

By reviewing cell phone records, investigators determined Dijor M. Boykin, 20, was sending and receiving text messages and phone calls at the approximate time of the crash that killed Carolyn Henry of Harrisburg, according to court reports. Boykin was charged Wednesday with vehicular homicide and reckless driving in the crash.

Boykin was traveling west on Union Deposit Road in Susquehanna Township, Dauphin County, on June 5, when she crossed the median and hit Henry's car head on, according to court documents. She later told investigators she was unsure whether or not she was using a cell phone at the time of the crash, but admitted it could have been a contributing factor.

Henry, 55, was a reading teacher at Harrisburg High School. The veteran teacher was an advocate for reading and literacy, an organizer of the school's new teen book club and the founder of the school's poetry club.

Dauphin County Assistant District Attorney Fran Chardo said severe consequences of Boykin's reckless driving led him to seek a vehicular homicide charge.

"If you're reckless and you cause a death, that's homicide by vehicle," he said. "You can be reckless and not cause any death."