BY SHERI MCWHIRTER
smcwhirter@record-eagle.com
May 15, 2009 07:00 am TRAVERSE CITY -- A Kalkaska woman faces criminal charges for a traffic crash that killed two people, including her young daughter. Authorities charged Louann Pearl Hubbard, 48, of Wagenschutz Road in rural Kalkaska County, with two counts of negligent homicide for allegedly causing the deaths of two passengers in her vehicle in an Aug. 25 crash in Grand Traverse County's Acme Township. Victims included her daughter, Anndrea Pearl Lee Kennedy, 8, and a front-seat passenger, Barbara Antaya, 51, of Kalkaska. Hubbard is expected to be arrested soon, said Sgt. Brian Giddis, of the Grand Traverse County Sheriff's Department. Negligent homicide is classified as a high court misdemeanor, and Hubbard could be sentenced to two years in prison and a possible $2,000 fine, if convicted. Neither Hubbard nor her family members could be reached for comment, and neither could Antaya's relatives. The crash was tragic, especially because a young life was lost, said the Rev. David Rosenberg, who officiated at Anndrea's funeral. "This little girl was so precious. It was such a sad situation," he said. It's taken more than eight months for charges to be filed because authorities investigated whether to charge Hubbard with operating under the influence of a controlled substance, said Al Schneider, prosecuting attorney. "We wanted to fully explore that option," he said. Hubbard had a prescription for methadone, a strong and addictive painkiller, but toxicology reports showed the drug in her system was within therapeutic levels, Schneider said. Hubbard allegedly veered across the center line on U.S. 31 near Bates Road, nearly side-swiped one vehicle and crashed head-on into another. It's not clear what caused Hubbard to cross the center line, investigators said. "That's the big question," Schneider said. No infractions appear on Hubbard's driving record for the last seven years, according to Michigan Secretary of State records.
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