Driver Sentenced In Crash That Seriously Injured Pedestrian In Meriden

MERIDEN, CT — A driver has been sentenced to serve at least three years in prison in connection with a hit-and-run crash that seriously injured a pedestrian last year in Meriden, according to police.

Paige Cassina was sentenced Aug. 21 at Meriden Superior Court on a charge of evading motor vehicle crash involving a pedestrian, according to a news release from Sgt. Michael Boothroyd.

The crash happened around 11:15 p.m. on April 4 in the 400 block of Bee Street. Arriving officers found a 26-year-old woman on the sidewalk of the northbound side of Bee Street with life-threatening injuries, police said at the time.

The vehicle that struck the woman had left the scene, police said.

Police identified Cassina as the driver and said her vehicle left a trail of debris to Meadow Brook Drive, a dead-end street, according to Boothroyd.

A witness to the crash saw the evading vehicle turn onto Meadow Brook Drive, according to Boothroyd.

Boothroyd said police used video surveillance from neighboring homes to find Cassina’s Nissan Rogue hidden behind a home on Meadow Brook Road. Cassina was found inside the home by police, according to Boothroyd.

The victim had serious life-threatening injuries the night of the crash, and Boothroyd said she was “slowly recovering” from the crash, as of Wednesday.

“Cassina pled Nolo Contendere on the charges of Evading Responsibility with serious physical injuries was found Guilty by the Judge and sentenced to 10 Years suspended after 3 Years,” Boothroyd wrote in the news release. “She also pled Nolo Contendere to the charge of Tampering with Physical Evidence found Guilty by the Judge and sentenced to Three Years.

“Nolo Contendere (meaning no contest), the defendants state that while they do not wish to plead guilty, they agree that the prosecutor has sufficient evidence that the court would find the defendant guilty. This is the same as pleading guilty as far as the conviction is concerned.”