A Long Beach teacher accused of hitting and killing a 78-year-old pedestrian in Belmont Heights last year pleaded not guilty Wednesday to one felony count each of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and hit-and-run resulting in death or serious injury.
Authorities allege Deborah Betance, 55, crashed into Jere Whitney, who was walking in a crosswalk on Fourth Street in Belmont Heights around 10 p.m. on July 6, 2021. Betance then fled the scene westbound on Fourth Street, police said.
Betance is a teacher at Longfellow Elementary School, who is now on unpaid suspension, according to Long Beach Unified School District spokesman Chris Eftychiou.
Whitney died a few days after the crash at a local hospital, according to authorities.
Detectives in May presented the case against Betance to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, which then issued a warrant for her arrest.
She was taken into custody July 13 at her Long Beach home and has been free on $50,000 bail since July 19.
On Thursday, Betance made her first court appearance for the case in Downtown Long Beach where she pleaded not guilty to the charges, court records show.
When contacted Thursday afternoon, Betance did not immediately respond to questions about the case.
Long Beach teacher arrested on suspicion of deadly hit-and-run in Belmont Heights