The Gardnerville woman who allegedly struck a man while he was walking along the side of Centerville Lane and left him lying by the side of the road is expected to plead guilty this morning to one count of failure to stop at the scene of an accident involving death or personal injury.
Melissa Rose Hernandez, 27, is accused of hitting Cayle Hanson, 32, with her pickup truck shortly after 11 p.m. July 22 near Lutheran Bridge in Gardnerville and leaving the scene.
According to her attorney, in exchange for her guilty plea, a misdemeanor charge of failure to use due care will be dropped.
Hanson suffered broken ribs, cuts and bruises and lay by the side of the road for nearly 30 minutes before he was spotted by two teenage boys on their way home. They called 911.
Hanson was released from the hospital after several days in intensive care and has medical bills totaling more than $100,000.
After a story appeared on The Record-Courier's Web site Aug. 4 about the accident and the search for the driver, the highway patrol received an anonymous tip about Hernandez.
Troopers transported Hanson to Hernandez's workplace where they matched up his injuries to the damage on her vehicle. Hanson's wife also retrieved a broken side mirror from the accident site that matched one missing from Hernandez's vehicle.
