The La Porte County Sheriff’s Office announced an arrest in connection with a fatality accident that occurred February 12, 2024 on U.S. 20.
Police say 40-year-old Lashea Bird was the driver of a motor vehicle traveling west on U.S. 20 when it left the roadway and crashed into a tree located on the northwest corner of U.S. 20 and Wilhelm Road. The crash resulted in the death of Kendra L. Murphy who was a passenger in the vehicle.
Several agency members continued investigating the circumstances of the crash and presented findings of the investigation to the La Porte County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office and later to La Porte County Circuit Court.
La Porte Circuit Court Judge Tom Alevizos issued a sealed arrest warrant for Bird on March 1 for three Level 4 Felony counts of operating while intoxicated – causing death.
Information developed that Bird had fled Indiana and was located in Texas, according to the report. Members of the Fugitive Apprehension Street Team shared information regarding Bird to federal colleagues in Texas, and on May 7 Bird was taken into custody by a U.S. Marshals Service Taskforce in Tarrant County, Texas. Bird waived extradition the following day to begin the process of being extradited back to La Porte County, Indiana.
Bird has returned to La Porte County and is being housed in the La Porte County Jail. She remains held on a $20,000 cash-only bond through Circuit Court.
Suspects are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.
