Police charge driver who allegedly killed pedestrian while live streaming on TikTok

Local police said they have charged an Illinois driver who struck and killed a pedestrian while livestreaming on TikTok.

The New York Times reports Tynesha McCarty-Wroten, who posts on TikTok under the name Tea Tyme, has been charged by the Zion Police Department with two felonies — reckless homicide and aggravated use of a communications device resulting in death.

In a video reshared by other TikTok accounts, a woman posting as Tea Tyme can be seen talking on her phone when there is a loud sound. An off-screen child asks: “What is this?” The woman replies: I hit someone.

Surveillance videos reportedly showed McCarty-Rhoten’s car entering the intersection while the traffic light was still red, with investigators determining that she did not slow down or change lanes before striking Darren Lucas, who was later pronounced dead at the hospital.

McCarty-Rhoten’s lawyer told the New York Times that the evidence will show that “what happened was an accident, and it was a negligent act, but it was not an intentional or reckless act.”