Man pleads not guilty in fatal hit-and-run crash from Sept. 2022

RACINE — A man charged with leaving the scene of a fatal hit-and-run crash was in Racine County Circuit Court on Wednesday for arraignment.

Scotty A. Dow, 45, pleaded not guilty to a hit-and-run involving death and driving while revoked (causing death).

While in court, the defendant attempted to have his bond modified so that he could drive for work.

However, the victim’s sister spoke out against the bond modification.

“I feel he should not be allowed to drive,” she told the court. “There is a responsibility in driving, and I don’t feel he’s responsible enough to be driving.”

Commissioner Alice Rudebusch denied the motion for bond modification.

The fatal hit-and-run case was assigned to Judge Eugene Gasiorkiewicz’s court for trial. A status hearing was set for 9 a.m. on Nov. 20.

Case history

The Racine Police Department was dispatched on Sept. 11, 2022, to the intersection of Washington and Phillips Avenues on the report of a pedestrian who was hit by a passing vehicle.

According to a statement released at the time, the victim, identified as 59-year-old Timmy Oliver, got out of a friend’s car and was preparing to cross Washington. The friend reportedly heard a crash, saw his friend in the road, and a car leaving the area.

When officers arrived, they located the victim in the roadway where a bystander was performing chest compressions. However, the victim was unresponsive and demonstrated no pulse.

According to the criminal complaint, investigators located items approximately 15 feet from where the hit-and-run victim was lying. The items included parts of a vehicle, including a broken windshield wiper blade, and the items the victim was carrying when he was struck, which included a carry-out meal and Icehouse brand beer.

Hit-and-run vehicle located

Investigators reviewed RPD traffic cameras and were able to locate a vehicle with heavy front-end damage leaving the area, according to the criminal complaint.

Investigators searched the area and located a light-blue Ford Focus in the 1600 block of Mead Street. The vehicle showed heavy damage to the front end, a hole in the windshield, and a missing windshield wiper blade.

Investigators also located pieces of a carry-out meal in the grill and an Icehouse brand beer can.

According to the criminal complaint, a witness said Dow came home that evening walking in the rain. He reportedly expressed concern that a person died and said “he did not want to get life.”