December 08, 2017
Source/GoFundMe
Jessica Kurtz was killed in a hit-and-run accident in Trevose on Nov. 27, 2017.
Authorities in Lower Southampton Township have arrested a Philadelphia man in connection with the hit-and-run incident that killed a teenage girl and seriously injured her boyfriend late last month.
James Howell, 48, of Philadelphia.
Police said Howell's pickup truck struck 19-year-old Jessica Kurtz and 18-year-old William Vanarsdale, both graduates of Bensalem High School, and sped off without stopping to call 911 and render them aid.
The couple had just left Wawa and were crossing the street at the time of the incident, according to the Bucks County Courier Times. Kurtz died the day after the crash. Vanarsdale continues to recover from his injuries.
A GoFundMe page for Kurtz has raised more than $11,000 in the days since her death.
Witnesses described the offending vehicle as a ruddy Ford F150 pickup truck. Howell was allegedly borrowing the car from a woman who owned and was driving with a suspended license.
US Marshals located Howell in West Philadelphia on Thursday afternoon and took him into custody.
Howell is being held at Bucks County Prison in lieu of 10 percent of $250,000 bail. A preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 20.
