An enraged crowd outside an Alabama bar pummeled a man after he struck and fatally injured a woman on a highway, according to reports.
The man later died from his injuries succumbing to beating the same way he allegedly killed a man 18 years ago.
Around midnight on Aug. 5, Atmore police responded to a distress call from The Tavern sports bar about a pedestrian who had been hit by a vehicle.
The victim, 24-year-old Hannah Annette Martin, suffered grave injuries when a vehicle struck her while she was crossing Highway 31 to reach the bar late that evening. After efforts by officers to administer CPR failed, she was transported to a local hospital, where she died.
The driver behind the wheel of the 2005 Chevrolet Tahoe that struck Martin was identified as 45-year-old Kenneth Elbert Harrison from Silverhill. After the accident, Harrison drove his vehicle into The Tavern’s parking lot, where an unspecified number of bar patrons jumped him. He had to be airlifted to a local trauma center because of the extent of his injuries.
Harrison was arrested in 2010 when he was accused of murdering Sanford Lee Ledbetter. Ledbetter, 54, from Elberta, had disappeared in 2005, and his remains were discovered a year later.
Harrison confessed to the crime and entered a plea deal for a lesser charge of manslaughter. His sentence, which started in October 2011, was 15 years, to be served concurrently with a 10-year theft conviction. However, he was released early after serving only five years.
Sgt. Darrell McCann of the Atmore police shared that Martin had parked her vehicle on the opposite side of the highway from The Tavern and was attempting to cross the road when Harrison’s vehicle struck her. The impact propelled her into The Tavern’s parking lot.
The Atmore Police Department is actively investigating the circumstances surrounding Harrison’s death, while ALEA is probing the crash that claimed Martin’s life.
Martin’s friends and family mourned her death on social media after her death.
“She was a ray of light, always positive, and never in competition with anyone. To know her was to love her,” wrote La’Dasia Willis, Martin’s friend, on Aug. 7. “She made an impact on everyone who knew her.”
