Motorist Might Be Charged For Accident That Killed Horse

Resident State Trooper David Merriam said he believes charges would be filed against the motorist who .

The official report was not yet completed, but based on the information that was available, Merriam said, the accident took place at 9:55 p.m. on Sept. 16 when Claude Errera, 45, of 56 Deerfield Lane, Bethany, crossed the center line on a curve on Fairwood Road and struck a horse ridden by a 15-year-old Bethany girl.

Police did not release the name of the girl because of her age. She was riding with two other teenage girls at the time of the accident.

The girls were reportedly headed east. Merriam said it appears that Errera had just pulled out of Deerfield Lane when the accident happened.

The girl suffered a concussion, a sprained ankle and a sprained wrist and was treated at Yale-New Haven Hospital, Merriam said.

The horse, which was named Honey, was struck head-on and died at the scene from internal injuries, according to police.

Merriam said the horse was kept in riding stables near the scene of the accident owned by Lucy Caruso, but he didn’t know if Caruso owns the horse or was boarding it for someone else.

Although Merriam did not expect charges to be filed against the horse riders, he said the accident report might hold them partially at fault for the accident.

He said riders are not supposed to ride three abreast as the three girls were riding at the time of the accident. "You’re supposed to ride single file," Merriam said.

Also, he said, the girls did not have safety reflectors and lights on the horses, which are required at night.

Merriam said he did not know why the girls were riding horses on a town road so late after sunset. "That’s the million dollar question," he said.