Mercer County Prosecutor Janetta D. Marbrey reported Wednesday that an investigation conducted by the Mercer County Homicide Task Force, the prosecutor’s Serious Collison Response Team and the Trenton Police Department has resulted in the arrest of a Trenton woman.
Asia Brown, 47, is charged with one count of first-degree murder and one count of second-degree leaving the scene of a motor vehicle accident resulting in death. The prosecutor’s office has filed a motion to detain her pending trial.
At approximately 4:12 p.m. on Tuesday, April 1, Trenton police officers were dispatched to the 1400 block of West State Street, where a pedestrian was reportedly struck by a vehicle. Responding officers located the victim, identified as 67-year-old Caldner Bell of Trenton. Bell was transported to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead a short time later.
An investigation revealed that following an altercation between Bell and Brown in front of Bell’s West State Street residence, Brown allegedly drove her Lexus SUV over the curb onto the grass area between the roadway and the sidewalk and struck Bell with her vehicle.
The prosecutor’s office says that after striking the victim, the Lexus continued to accelerate onto the front lawn of a residence and hit a house. Brown fled the scene in the vehicle on West State Street toward Newell Avenue, the prosecutor’s office said.
A short time later, according to authorities, the Lexus drove through a closed construction zone where two Trenton police officers were working. The officers observed that the vehicle was missing a front bumper and had a ruptured tire on the driver’s side.
While the Lexus was stopped in the area of Montgomery and East State streets, the officers approached the vehicle and conducted a motor vehicle stop. The driver, identified as Asia Brown, was detained without incident.
