The approximate location of the hit-and-run on Howe Avenue.
SHELTON – The vehicle that struck and killed a woman on Howe Avenue was speeding, according to an arrest warrant.
Ariela Treysler, 19, was arrested on Jan. 25 and charged with evading responsibility resulting in death and traveling unreasonably fast. Treysler is scheduled to appear in Derby court for her arraignment on Feb. 16.
Treysler is accused of striking 64-year-old Stephanie Peterson close to midnight on Jan. 6 as Peterson tried to cross the road.
Police analysis of surveillance video determined that Treysler was traveling between 40 and 45 mph when she hit Peterson, according to an arrest warrant. The posted speed limit was 25 mph.
Her vehicle did not slow down before or after Peterson was struck, according to police.
The warrant states that Treysler was driving home from her boyfriend’s house in Shelton when she struck Peterson on Howe Avenue. Surveillance video captured the incident and shows Peterson crossing the road in dark clothing before Treysler’s vehicle hits her.
The medical examiner’s office said Peterson’s cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head, neck, and torso.
Treysler claimed that “she did not know what she struck” and that she didn’t stop because she feared her car would run out of gas.
Treysler’s vehicle sustained damage to the passenger-side headlights, hood, fender, and windshield.
Stephanie Peterson
After striking Peterson, police said Treysler purchased gas at a station about half a mile away, then went back to her boyfriend’s residence.
Treysler allegedly told her boyfriend’s father she had hit something.
The boyfriend’s father, Rogelio Figueroa, went out to retrace her steps.
Figueroa found Officer John Napoleone at the scene of the incident and told them the driver was at his house. Treysler was taken to the police station and interviewed. Her account of events was corroborated by surveillance video and phone records.
Peterson was taken to Bridgeport Hospital and pronounced dead later that night.
Police searched Treysler’s phone and found no signs of her using it when the crash occurred. The arrest warrant doesn’t state whether any drug tests were administered, but officers on scene reported that Treysler did not appear to be intoxicated.
Peterson was raised in Bridgeport, where she graduated from Bassick High School in 1977. She leaves behind two daughters and two grandchildren, along with an extended family. Click here to read her obituary.
A candlelight vigil was held for her in Bridgeport on Jan. 17.
Shelton Police Department Officer John Kekac authored the arrest warrant.
