By Tabitha Evans Moore
Editor & Publisher
LYNCHBURG, Tenn. — An 18-year-old Moore County man is facing a vehicular homicide charge after a head-on crash on Lost Creek Road last Friday left a 61-year-old man dead, according to a citation and a Tennessee Highway Patrol preliminary crash report obtained by The Lynchburg Times.
Joseph R. Curtis was driving a Ford Ranger west on Lost Creek Road around 2:32 p.m. on September 11 when he passed several vehicles in a no-passing zone, crossing a double solid line, and struck an oncoming vehicle head-on, THP Trooper Austin Thornton wrote in the citation.
Editor’s Note: The charges outlined in the citation are allegations. Curtis is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
The driver of that vehicle, 61-year-old David Northcutt, was traveling east on Lost Creek Road at the time and was killed in the crash, according to the preliminary report. Neither driver was wearing a seat belt. Curtis was also injured in the collision, the report states.
Officials charged Curtis with vehicular homicide by recklessness under T.C.A. § 39-13-213, along with reckless driving, improper passing, driving without a valid license, operating a vehicle without due care and lacking proof of financial responsibility, according to the citation. He is currently being held in the Moore County Jail on a $500,000 bond.
If convicted, Curtis would face the penalties for vehicular homicide by recklessness under T.C.A. § 39-13-213(a)(1) — a Class C felony carrying three to 15 years in prison and up to $10,000 in fines. A conviction would also require the court to suspend his driving privileges for a period of three to 10 years. The reckless driving, improper passing, unlicensed driving and insurance-related charges are misdemeanors that would be sentenced separately. Actual sentencing outcomes vary based on prior record and the judge’s discretion, and any sentence would ultimately be up to the court.
Curtis is scheduled to appear in Moore County General Sessions Court on Tuesday, November 3, at 9 a.m.
This is an ongoing story. The Times will continue to watch it closely, and report as more facts in the case become available.•
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