A Johnston County grand jury has indicted a 49-year-old Clayton woman on a felony involuntary manslaughter charge after a state crime lab report found cocaine and methamphetamine in her blood following a head-on crash that killed a 79-year-old Garner woman. Jennifer Cameron appeared in Johnston County Superior Court on the morning of Friday for a required first appearance on the new charge, with her bond set at $500,000 secured.
According to a preliminary investigation detailed by Shore News Network, the crash happened around 11:15 a.m. on June 24 on McLemore Road near Lassiter Farms Lane, in the Cleveland community near Willow Springs. A 2013 Chevrolet sedan heading east crossed the centerline and crashed head-on into a westbound Chevrolet Malibu, per the North Carolina State Highway Patrol’s preliminary findings. McLemore Road was closed for about two and a half hours while crews worked the scene.
The driver of the Malibu, Patricia Ann Mailile of Garner, was pronounced dead at the scene. She was alone in the car and was wearing her seat belt, according to CBS 17. Cameron was taken to WakeMed Raleigh with what troopers described as serious but non-life-threatening injuries, the station reported.
Court Timeline and Lab Findings
Cameron was first charged with misdemeanor death by motor vehicle and driving left of center, and early reports said troopers did not believe speed or alcohol were factors in the crash. Investigators said at the time that they planned to test Cameron’s blood for impairing substances and review cell phone records, though authorities have not said whether the cell phone review turned up anything relevant.
Months after the crash, a North Carolina State Crime Laboratory report dated October 6 found cocaine and methamphetamine in Cameron’s blood and was filed with the court on November 5, according to the Shore News Network account cited above. The indictment gives June 24 as the offense date. Court records cited in that report do not state the quantities detected or whether investigators believe the drugs caused or contributed to the crash.
The Johnston County grand jury returned the superseding indictment on November 2, and an order for Cameron’s arrest followed on November 3, per court records cited in the report. She was indicted on the felony involuntary manslaughter count and appeared in court on November 6 for her first appearance on the upgraded charge, four days after the indictment.
Bond Raised
A release order tied to the new charge says Cameron’s bond was raised because of the seriousness of the felony count.
Under North Carolina law, involuntary manslaughter is classified as a Class F felony, according to North Carolina General Assembly statute G.S. 14-18. Any potential sentence would depend on Cameron’s prior record under the state’s structured sentencing system.
A Separate Appellate Case
In a separate Edgecombe County crash case, the North Carolina Court of Appeals recounted blood tests detecting diazepam and a cocaine metabolite, along with other substances; the defendant was convicted of second-degree murder and aggravated serious injury by vehicle, according to the North Carolina Court of Appeals. That case is a comparison, not a finding about Cameron: its reported facts do not explain how impairment or causation was established, and Cameron’s manslaughter charge remains unresolved.
