He sped in South Hill while high, then killed mother of 2 in wreck. Now he faces prison
A 33-year-old man who drove nearly 100 mph on a road near South Hill while high last year and collided with another vehicle, killing a mother of two, was sentenced this week.
Pierce Pearson pleaded guilty Monday in Pierce County Superior Court to vehicular homicide in the March 7, 2021 death of Nina Fournier. Judge Matthew Thomas sentenced him the same day to seven years in prison.
The prison term was within the standard sentencing range.
The fatal collision occurred just after 11 a.m. at Canyon Road East and 128th Street East. Fournier, 31, was out grabbing coffee that Sunday morning when Pearson’s Hyundai, which had been spotted by witnesses speeding and swerving into oncoming traffic, struck the woman’s SUV and went up and over it.
Fournier was pronounced dead at the scene. Pearson’s car landed on its roof. When a Pierce County Sheriff’s Department deputy asked him how the crash happened, he allegedly responded, “What collision?”
In his plea statement, Pearson admitted to driving while under the influence of drugs and speeding when he crashed into Fournier’s vehicle.
The results of a toxicology test found Pearson’s blood contained lorazepam, a type of benzodiazepine medication often used to treat anxiety disorders. The test also found carboxy-THC and THC in his blood.
When Pearson was taken to a hospital after the crash, he made several nonsensical statements and told a nurse he had taken heroin the night before the crash to help him fall asleep, according to the declaration for determination of probable cause.
According to a forensic psychological evaluation completed in April, Pearson reported a history of recent substance use to staff at Pierce County Jail, but the psychologist wrote in the evaluation that the details of his use were unclear.
“When asked if he had a drug of choice, his attorney interjected and indicated he did not want Mr. Pearson to answer questions related to substance use,” the psychologist wrote.
In victim impact statements submitted to the court, family and friends of Fournier described the woman they’d lost and the effects her death had on those around her.
“There is a hole in me that I know instinctively will never be fully filled again,” the victim’s father, James Fournier, wrote. “The rest of my family is dealing with the same excruciating sorrow.”
They said Fournier was a loving mother and passionate woman who brought kindness to everyone around her.
Fournier’s sibling, Krista Fournier, wrote that she and her sister would talk every day for hours, often over video chat. Sometimes the two didn’t say much, Fournier wrote, they just wanted to feel each other’s presence.
“Nina meant the world to me,” her sister wrote. “She wasn’t just my sister. She was my best friend. She felt like a soulmate to me.”
This story was originally published March 10, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
