Local police said they have charged an Illinois driver who struck and killed a pedestrian while she was livestreaming on TikTok.
The New York Times reports that Tynesha McCarty-Wroten, who posts to TikTok under the name Tea Tyme, has been charged by the Zion Police Department with two felonies — reckless homicide and aggravated use of a communications device resulting in death.
In a video that has been reshared by other accounts on TikTok, woman posting as Tea Tyme can reportedly be seen speaking into her phone when there’s a loud thud. An offscreen child asks, “What was that?” then the woman replies, “I hit somebody.”
Surveillance videos reportedly showed McCarty-Wroten’s vehicle entering the intersection while the traffic light was still red, with investigators determining that she did not seem to slow down or change course before striking Darren Lucas, who was later pronounced dead at the hospital.
McCarty-Wroten’s lawyer told the NYT that evidence will show that “what happened was an accident, was a negligent act, but was not an intentional or reckless act.”