LUBBOCK, Texas — The Texas Department of Public Safety said it arrested Laura Lorena Rodriguez, 50, at her home in Odessa, Texas, on Tuesday morning in connection to the death of Trooper Kevin Alexis Ramirez Vasquez who died in a Lubbock-area hospital after responding to a crash.
While on duty, Vasquez, 25, was outside his vehicle investigating an earlier traffic crash along SH-302 in Ector County on September 17. Rodriguez’s vehicle hit Ector County Sheriff’s Office Deputy Justin Toombs’ vehicle, causing it to strike Vasquez.
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Court documents stated Rodriguez was traveling at 76 miles per hour when she hit Vasquez. The posted speed limit on the road was 65 miles per hour. It was later revealed Rodriguez was manipulating her phone in the seconds leading up to the crash, according to court documents.
Vasquez suffered severe injuries and was taken to Medical Center Hospital in Odessa. He was then airlifted to a Lubbock-area hospital, where he succumbed to his injuries on September 28.