GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Police have identified an inmate killed while working alongside a Gwinnett County roadway on Wednesday.
Police said 22-year-old state inmate Hunter O'Connor of Mableton, Georgia was part of a work detail along Lawrenceville Highway when he was hit by a car and died around 9:40 a.m.
The accident happened near Lawrenceville Suwanee Road as O'Connor was walking behind the work detail bus to help control approaching traffic. Police said while O'Connor was in the road, he was wearing a vest and carrying a warning sign when he was hit.
"The driver came up and wasn't paying attention and struck and killed him," police told 11Alive.
The investigation shows that the driver, 44-year-old Jennifer Adkins of Buford, Georgia, struck O'Connor who later died at the scene.
Officials said Adkins wasn't under the influence of alcohol or any drug but may have been texting while driving when the accident happened.
Adkins stayed on the scene after the accident and was arrested. She now faces charges of vehicular homicide in the second degree, distracted driving and following too closely.
Two days later, Adkins was released on $6,000 bond.
O'Connor was serving a five-year sentence for five counts of gang participation and individual counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and possession of marijuana with intent to distribute.
He was scheduled for release no later than Nov. 29, 2020.
