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MANAHAWKIN, NJ A Manahawkin man was indicted Thursday on an aggravated manslaughter charge in connection with a crash that killed a teenage girl, the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office said.

Little Egg Harbor Township police responded to Radio Road and Baltusrol Court for a report of a crash on Jan. 30 at 9:45 p.m., authorities said.

Michael Pillarella, 27, of Manahawkin was traveling northbound in a Hyundai Elantra on Radio Road when he failed to negotiate a curve in the roadway, crossed over the centerline and struck an oncoming Toyota XB travelling southbound on Radio Road, police said.

The Toyota XB was driven by a teenager with another teenager sitting in the front passenger seat. Both teenagers were airlifted to Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune with serious injuries, the OCPO said.

Pillarella was airlifted to AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center Trauma Center in Atlantic City, authorities said. He was treated and released from the hospital, and was initially issued motor vehicle summonses for reckless driving and failure to maintain lane.

On Feb. 9, one of the teenagers died from her injuries in the hospital, the OCPO said. The charges against Pillarella were then upgraded to include aggravated manslaughter and vehicular homicide.

A draw of Pillarella's blood on Feb. 15 revealed that he was under the influence of alprazolam, methadone and fentanyl at the time of the crash, police said.

Police also determined that Pillarella was driving at an excessive rate of speed around 74 miles per hour at the time of the crash, which resulted in a speeding charge.

Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer announced that Pillarella was indicted by a grand jury in Ocean County for aggravated manslaughter, vehicular homicide, strict liability vehicular homicide, aggravated assault and assault by auto on Thursday.

Billhimer acknowledged the efforts of Supervising Assistant Prosecutor Robert Cassidy and Assistant Prosecutor Alyssa Mandara who are handling the case on behalf of the State, as well as the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office Vehicular Homicide Unit, Ocean County Prosecutor's Office Victim Witness Advocacy Unit, Little Egg Harbor Township Police Department, New Jersey State Police and Ocean County Sheriff's Office Crime Scene Investigation Unit, for their collaborative assistance in connection with this investigation resulting in the indictment.

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Manahawkin Man Indicted In Crash That Killed A Teenager - Patch.com