Exotic dancer pleads not guilty to manslaughter, other charges

Lisa Snedeker

Tuesday, July 11, 2000 | 9:47 a.m.

A woman accused of plowing her minivan into a roadside work crew and killing six teen-agers pleaded not guilty Monday to multiple charges including involuntary manslaughter and driving under the influence.

Family members and friends of the victims filled the courtroom wearing T-shirts bearing the names and photographs of those who were killed. They were audibly and visibly upset after Jessica Williams entered her plea.

District Judge Mark Gibbons admonished the group to be quiet and many left the courtroom in tears.

"From the victim's perspective you know that your child is dead. You know there were drugs in her (Williams) system and you know drugs impair a person's ability to drive," said Stop DUI Executive Director Sandy Heverly. "And then to hear the words 'not guilty' come out of her mouth is devastating"

The 21-year-old exotic dancer faces 21 charges that also include reckless driving.

Metro Police say Williams was under the influence of marijuana and the drug Ecstasy when she fell asleep at the wheel of her father's minivan March 19.

She drifted into the median of Interstate 15 striking the teen work crew picking up trash as part of a county program in which young misdemeanor offenders work off their sentences.

Six teen-agers died and one was injured.

The county was fined by the state for safety violations and discontinued the roadside trash program.

Prosecutors say Williams fell asleep because she had been smoking marijuana. Her attorney, John Watkins, claims she simply fell asleep.

Watkins requested that the trial be postponed until April, but Gibbons said he thinks six months will give the attorney plenty of time to prepare the case. He set Williams' trial for Jan. 29.

"The victims have a right to get this matter resolved," he said.