What we know, and don’t, about the hit-and-run charge against NC Auditor Beth Wood
Updated: North Carolina State Auditor Beth Wood pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor hit-and-run charge on March 23. For details, see this story.
Details of the crash that led to charges against North Carolina State Auditor Beth Wood in December have slowly emerged since the collision first came to light Jan. 18, but there are still several unanswered questions about the incident.
Documents obtained by The News & Observer, including an accident report filled out by a Raleigh police officer who responded to the scene, have provided some important answers about what happened. Those include the fact that the vehicle Wood is accused of crashing was a 2021 Toyota Camry issued to her by the state government’s fleet of vehicles for state employees.
Here’s what we know and don’t know about the Dec. 8 incident.
What we know about the crash
The N&O was able to confirm the Toyota Camry assigned to Wood by Motor Fleet Management, a division of the Department of Administration, was the vehicle found at the scene of the crash. The car’s description, along with its single-digit license-plate number and VIN number, listed in the police report, matched information provided to The N&O by DOA.
The police report alleges that Wood was driving her car on South Salisbury Street, toward West Hargett Street, when she turned to the right and crashed into a 2016 Toyota sedan that was parked on the side of the road, out of the way of traffic. Wood’s car “overrode up onto the hood” of the parked car, according to the responding officer.
On Dec. 12, Wood submitted an “automotive loss report” to Holman, an accident services management company used by state government, in which she reported that, “I made a sharp sudden turn and struck a parked vehicle.”
In a statement released Jan. 23, Wood said she crashed into the other vehicle after attending a holiday gathering in downtown Raleigh. She said she was “shaken” by the incident and left the scene of the crash when she couldn’t move her car.
She apologized in her statement to the owner of the car she hit, as well as her staff and the public, and said she regretted her decision to leave the scene without informing the police or the other car’s owner, calling it “a serious mistake.”
What we know about what happened after the crash
A video posted on Instagram the night of the crash appears to show a group of people escorting Wood into a building on the corner of South Salisbury and West Hargett streets. The building at 132 S. Salisbury St. includes the office of the Edmisten and Webb law firm. Rufus Edmisten, a former N.C. secretary of state and attorney general and a partner in the firm, was hosting a holiday party in the building the night of the crash, WRAL reported, citing a copy of an invitation to the party.
When police arrived at the scene, they found the engine of Wood’s car running, and reported that the driver “appeared to have fled the scene.”
Three different 911 calls released by police, bystanders who discovered the scene of the crash said that Wood’s car was on top of the other car.
The crash occurred around 9:12 p.m., according to a copy of the citation Wood was issued. The first 911 call was made at 9:20 p.m. and the other two followed at 9:24 p.m. In one of the calls, the caller tells the dispatcher that a police officer has just arrived.
By the time police arrived, they said there were no witnesses, but that surveillance video was available. They also said that both vehicles were towed away.
Wood also reported that the police had been called and that her vehicle was not driveable.
It took until Jan. 6 before the owner of the other car, Chris Valverde, says he learned from the state’s insurance company that the driver was Wood. He said they spoke on the phone after a few days of trying to reach her.
What we know about the charges
Wood was formally charged on Dec. 12, four days after the crash occurred, according to the citation.
She was charged with a Class 2 misdemeanor for hit-and-run, leaving the scene and property damage, as well as an infraction for unsafe movement, according to online court records. The charges were also confirmed by Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman.
Asked if she anticipated any further charges in the case, Freeman told The N&O the investigation to date “has not led to the identification of others that may have been involved in the incident. At this time, there is not sufficient evidence to charge anyone additional.”
Wood’s attorney appeared in Wake County traffic court Jan. 26. Her next court date was set for March 23.
What is still not known about the crash
The police report and vehicle loss report only contain limited information, so there are still many details about the incident that aren’t clear:
▪ What caused Wood to allegedly drive her vehicle into the parked car.
▪ How the vehicle managed to end on top of the other car, partially suspended in the air.
▪ Whether Wood was leaving the party at Edmisten’s law office, and where she was headed, when the accident occurred.
▪ If, and when, Wood reported the accident to the police. Or, if police tracked the vehicle to Wood and contacted her, when they did so.
▪ Whether police questioned anyone at the law office party.
▪ Why it took police four days after the incident occurred to charge Wood.
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This story was originally published January 20, 2023 at 5:58 PM with the headline "What we know, and don’t, about the hit-and-run charge against NC Auditor Beth Wood."
