Reports: Trooper involved in fatal crash fired

ATLANTA — A Georgia State Patrol Trooper involved in a fatal crash on New Year’s Eve that claimed the life of the wife of the Atlanta Braves’ trainer has been fired, according to published reports.

On Dec. 31, Trooper First Class Donald Crozier was en route to help a trooper involved in a pursuit when he ran a red light and crashed his cruiser into a second vehicle driven by Braves Trainer Jeff Porter, according to reports. Porter’s wife, Kathy Porter, 54, of Loganville, was killed in the wreck.

Crozier was using his blue lights at the time of the crash, but he “failed to use due regard when traveling through the intersection” at Memorial Drive and Capitol Avenue, The Associated Press quoted an incident report as saying.

“Immediately following the crash, I requested the resources of the Georgia State Patrol’s Specialized Collision Reconstruction Team, the Department’s Special Investigations Division, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, and the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office to assist in the follow-up investigations,” Col. Mark McDonough, commissioner of the Georgia Department of Public Safety, said in a statement.

“The investigations are continuing and the findings from each will be presented to District Attorney Paul Howard for his consideration of charges when the investigations are concluded,” McDonough added.

“I am still suffering emotionally and physically as a result of the accident, but it is nothing compared to what the Porter family is going through,” WXIA-TV quoted Crozier as saying in a statement. “I am so sorry for their loss and I think of them and pray for them every day.”